29 October,2017 08:59 AM IST | Mumbai | Letty Mariam Abraham
Hollywood actor Chris Hemsworth claims that some of his best scenes in Thor Ragnarok were with Mark Ruffalo, who plays Hulk
You cannot miss Chris Hemsworth's obvious and drop dead gorgeous looks or ignore director Taika Waititi's sense of humour. Even before the interviews for Thor Ragnarok started, we'd heard that Hemsworth and Waititi got on like a house on fire. They completed each other's thoughts and sentences.
Chris Hemsworth
The two would often get lost in their own conversations and leave one bewildered. During a conversation with mid-day, Hemsworth and Waititi reveal that they knew each other from before, but were not sure if they wanted to tell anyone in advance.
Edited excerpts of the interview with the stars of Marvel Studios' Thor Ragnarok.
The film showcases a new dimension to Thor and Hulk. What inspired that idea?
Taika: Since childhood I've dreamed of the Marvel comic universe. This was my chance to make an independent film and expand it. As I have a background in comedy, I wanted to create something with a mix, that's hopefully funny but also something that has heart. The idea of Ragnarok is end of the world and also its rebirth. With this film, it was the end of Thor 1 and 2. It needed to be colourful, and vibrant. I wanted to do something unique and standalone. There's colour, music and interesting characters in the film. It's like six-year-olds were asked what they want to put in the movie and they all got their ideas through.
What was your reaction when you realised that you no longer have your hammer or hair?
Chris: Frankly, I was cool with it. It was like a rebirth of sorts. In order to build something new you ought to break the old. I was happy for any drastic change, from the hair to hammer to the costume. Every other film featuring Thor, I was looking for continuity. But here we were playing drastically different characters. The origin story is always easier. You have to earn the right to be a hero, once you achieve that you hit the ceiling wondering where you go from there. So, stripping him off his powers, making his uncertain and unsteady only made the character more human and relatable.
This is your first Marvel movie. How was it to join the universe both as a director and actor?
Taika: My first reaction was that they've lost their minds. It's like I won a competition. It was a great opportunity to do something different from what I have been doing. I felt I was getting too familiar with the kind of movies I've been doing. My last film was Hunt For The Wilderpeople. This film made me feel uncomfortable and challenged like never before.
Chris: We knew each other from before. So when his name came up on the short list I was thrilled. He's made a few of my favourite films. So I called him up and asked him how he wants to do this. Should we tell people we know each other or not. But we decided to pretend we didn't know each other and make it seem like it was their idea.
Taika Waititi
So you also played Korg. How was that?
Taika: I usually like to cast myself in my films. I wanted to play a part, but all the cool roles were taken (laughs). Korg was a role that we had not cast anyone in it. Before I took the role it was a rather small one. Once we played around with the character, we realised it could be more fun and we put some more life into it. It was not important enough a role that would distract me from directing and small enough to have fun.
How has this film enhanced your friendship with Mark Ruffalo?
Chris: I love Mark; he has always been a great friend. This is the most time we've ever spent together. I don't think we've spoken for this long in any other movie either. We always just stood in the avenger ensemble circle but not a long dialogue. With this film we got to invent the whole relationship. We had the free reign to decide whether our characters like each other or not, are they friendly. We quickly became an old married couple. That was some of my funniest scenes. We called it the break-up scene and then getting back together, the rekindling, the apology - as we were doing the scene.
Did Marvel give you a free reign to work on the film or was it under vigilance?
Taika: It felt like no one was looking over our shoulders. I'm used to people coming up and telling me, 'Can we have a square table instead of round one' or something or the other. In this case, I'd look over my shoulder, but there wasn't anyone. Kevin [Feige, the producer] didn't come down until the last week of shooting, but it was too late to change anything by then.
Tell us about Hela, the first female villain
Chris: Cate's Blanchett is just brilliant as Hela. She is one of the greatest actors that have ever been. I was excited to see what she was going to do with Hela. I had ideas of what she might do but I was completely blindsided by the outcome. She just has this insane off-kilter attitude to her character.
Taika: She's destroyed the idea of your typical villain. She's not only strong and beautiful but she's also funny. And she's also flawed. She has layers; she's tormented. She has got a lot more going on than some of the more typical villains that you see in these kinds of films.
