Summary

Robert Downey Jr. defends Thor’s complexity, praises Chris Hemsworth’s performance.
Hemsworth reflects on playing Thor, expresses regrets about the character’s lack of depth.
Thor’s portrayal improved in the MCU through reinvention in
Ragnarok
, but
Love & Thunder
faced critical backlash & failures.

Robert Downey Jr. has defended Thor’s character arc in his later MCU appearances, following Chris Hemsworth’s recent criticisms about the role. During an open and honest conversation for the cover story of Vanity Fair, Hemsworth reflected on his time playing Marvel’s God of Thunder, and described his regrets about the role. Hemsworth believed that Thor’s character was missing the depth and subtlety of some of his Avengers counterparts, saying:

“Sometimes I felt like a security guard for the team. I would read everyone else’s lines, and go, ‘Oh, they got way cooler stuff. They’re having more fun. What’s my character doing?'”

In a separate conversation with Vanity Fair, Iron Man star, Robert Downey Jr. defended Thor, and supported Hemsworth’s performance, saying the character is “the most complex psyche out of all us Avengers.” Of course, Downey Jr. wasn’t hurt or offended by Chris Hemsworth’s words, and actually believes the Australian actor should give himself more credit for his performance.

“He’s got wit and gravitas, but also such restraint, fire and gentleness,” Downey Jr. continued.

In the same interview, Robert Downey Jr. also praised Chris Hemsworth for his ability to bring Thor to the big screen in the first place.

“Thor as a character was super tricky to adapt — lots of implied limitations — but he and Ken Branagh figured out how to transcend, make him somehow relatable but godlike.”

Chris Hemsworth Blames Himself for Thor: Love & Thunder’s Failures
Thor: Love and Thunder The sequel to Thor: Ragnarok and the fourth movie in the Thor saga. Directed by Taika Waitit. The cast includes Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Christian Bale, Chris Pratt, and Karen Gillan.

Thor has had a rocky road throughout his MCU tenure. His first cinematic outing in 2011 (aptly titled Thor) was a modest critical success and, along with Iron Man and Captain America: The First Avenger, kick-started the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, the film’s sequel, Thor: The Dark World, was widely considered to be the weakest entry in the MCU for some time, and left many wondering if the character still had a future for standalone movies. But Hemsworth and Taika Waititi turned the character’s public image around in 2017 with Thor: Ragnarok, which reinvented the character and re-solidified his place in the future of the MCU.

But the success didn’t last forever as the character’s fourth standalone film, Thor: Love & Thunder, wasn’t well received by critics or fans, and was criticized for being too silly. During his Vanity Fair cover interview, Hemsworth said he blamed himself for the film’s shortcomings.

“I got caught up in the improv and the wackiness, and I became a parody of myself. I didn’t stick the landing.”

Related Robert Downey Jr. Would ‘Happily’ Return to the MCU: ‘It’s Too Integral a Part of My DNA’ “Never, ever bet against Kevin Feige,” RDJ says, as the Oscar-winning actor reveals he would return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Thor 5 hasn’t officially been confirmed by Marvel Studios yet, although most fans believe the God of Thunder will return for one more cinematic outing before handing over Mjölnir to another actor. If Thor does receive another solo movie, he will be the only Marvel character to receive a fifth standalone film. Chris Hemsworth is believed to be returning for another project as Thor Odinson. However, the new film may be Hemsworth’s last, as the actor has previously expressed a desire to step away from the character after his next appearance.

Outside the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Hemsworth has established himself as a bona fide action-star following his leading role in Netflix’s Extraction franchise. Hemsworth’s next movie will take him into the wasteland, as he appears alongside Anya Taylor-Joy in George Miller’s Mad Max prequel, Furiosa.

All of Thor’s appearances in the MCU are available to stream on Disney+.