Thor: Love & Thunder is the first 4th installment of a Marvel IP in Marvel Cinematic Universe history, with Chris Hemsworth’s Thor having been a staple of the MCU since the early days of Phase 1. Thor was released over a decade ago, and The God of Thunder has been through a cycle of trials, tribulations, and friendships since that movie’s release.
A core member of The Avengers, a founding member of The Revengers, and a veteran addition to the Guardians of the Galaxy, Thor has interacted with almost every player on the MCU roster.
Within the extensive list of MCU heroes, Thor has grown relationships with, Tony Stark and Steve Rogers are often the most associated companions (save for maybe Korg and Miek). The MCU’s “Big Three” have shared countless iconic moments on screen – from the three-way standoff in The Avengers to approaching Thanos in Avengers: Endgame. So it would be fair to assume that these three founding Avengers are thick as thieves.
But Chris Hemsworth might not see it that way. He has shared various great friendship moments with Captain America Steve Rogers, but his interactions with the Robert Downey Jr.’s genius, billionaire, playboy, and philanthropist have not always been so friendly.
Marvel’s Super Friends
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In a recent interview with ComicBook, Chris Hemsworth and Thor: Love and Thunder Director Taika Waititi talked about Thor’s relationship with the other tentpole characters of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. While Thor, Tony Stark, and Steve Rogers are widely considered the “Big Three” of the MCU, Hemsworth believes there is some favoritism within the group:
“I don’t know that Tony was ever very nice to Thor… [Thor] was the butt of every joke. He wasn’t. Cap was always a little more kind of friendly know. Offscreen, Chris Evans can… Down is the man.”
Taika Waititi had his opinions on the matter as well. Standing up for his main character, the voice of Korg says that his good buddy Thor deserved better:
“No, he was never nice to Thor… In Infinity War, you’d been away for a while… Then you land back on earth in Wakanda and no one says, ‘Hello.’ Really? I found that odd. Yes, they’re in the middle of a battle. I get that. But like everyone just like, ‘Oh, there he is.'”
This got Hemsworth fired up! He doubles down on his director’s statements and begins the revolution of showing the God of Thunder a little more respect:
“No one says, ‘Hello,’… It wasn’t a single, like, ‘What you mean up to? Your hair looks different. You look good! You had a haircut.’ No, no.”
Thor: Marvel’s Ultimate Team Player
“Pointbreak,” “Lebowski,” “Shakespeare in the park.”
For a universe that has so many villains created by the arrogance of Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark, they might be setting up Thor as the next big bad. Thor and Tony share animosity from jump street with a full-on battle in the woods upon first meeting. From there, while they have worked well together as teammates, Stark is constantly finding ways to downplay the powerful God from Asgard.
As an audience member, it is excellent character development as it shows that Tony will do anything he can to maintain alpha status in the room he is currently in. With Chris Hemsworth towering over everyone with the powers of Thor and a wide variety of gorgeous hairstyles, intellectual insults are his best weapon.
However, Thor, being the cool and calm hero he is has only shown Stark his frustrations one time in the MCU. In Avengers: Age of Ultron, as soon as Stark drops the ball on the handling of Loki’s scepter, Thor does not use his words to show his feelings. Instead, he lifts the armor-less Stark in the air to show everyone that Thor is still the baddest one in the room (or so he thought).
As far as Hemsworth and Waititi saying that no one in the MCU shows Thor the love he deserves, that might be true, but he has had some iconic team-ups. Thor and Captain America are one of the best duos in the MCU despite limited one-on-one time on screen. Steve Rogers even mentions Thor’s haircut as soon as he returns to Earth to battle Thanos and his army.
Thor and Bruce Banner shared a journey together in Thor: Ragnarok that breeds one of the most emotional beats in either of their stories in Avengers: Endgame, where Hulk tells Thor that it is friendship that will get him out of his rut. Not to mention the budding relationship he has with Korg, Miek, Doctor Strange, and the Guardians of the Galaxy.
With the first-ever 4th installment in MCU history, Thor’s MCU legacy is as great as anyone else’s. The only thing he does not have on his trophy case is to play antagonist. Loki has done it. Wanda has done it. Even Tony Stark played the foil in Captain America: Civil War.
If Marvel Studios wants to see the Avengers on the other side of Thor’s mighty powers, there is plenty of precedence. Iron Monger, Whiplash, Aldrich Killian, Ultron, Vulture, and Mysterio all stemmed from hatred toward Tony Stark. And he never called any of them “Point Break.”
