It is finally confirmed, Thor 4 is happening as Taika Waititi has rejoined forces with Marvel in order to write and direct a sequel to Thor: Ragnarok. Both Taika and Chris Hemsworth were interested to reteam up for a Thor 4 and with the God of Thunder surviving Avengers: Endgame, it was obvious that Thor would certainly get another solo outing in the future of the MCU. But if Thor 4 is already happening, then does that mean Thor won’t be there in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3?
Endgame saw Thor leaving the Earth to accompany the Guardians on their adventures. So we’ve all been suspecting that Thor would first appear in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 and that would lead him into Thor 4. Variety reported of Taika’s official return, but they also stated that the production dates of Taika Waititi’s live-action anime adaption Akira & Thor 4 would conflict with each other, and hence WB has put their film on hold.
Taika was working on Akira for quite a while and the film which was supposed to release in 2021. They would have begun production this fall but people at WB were surprised to see that Taika take on Marvel’s project prior to Akira, so they put the live-action adaption on hold. WB still wishes to put this film out with Waititi, so they’re ready to wait until the director is done with Thor 4’s production.
Well if you think about it, Marvel has so many sequels coming in within the next 4-5 years. Thor 4 could not have been a priority. The situation that Thor is currently in, he cannot do his solo film before Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. With James Gunn currently working on The Suicide Squad, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 will certainly come out in 2022. So, the fastest that that Marvel could launch Thor 4 is by 2022.
But the release dates that Marvel has for 2022 are for February, May, and July. Thor is a property that Marvel puts out in November. So, the only November release date that Marvel has after 2020 is in 2021. Thor 4 cannot happen then because Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 would not have happened by then. Considering everything, the earliest that Marvel can put out Thor 4 is by 2023.
According to Variety’s report it seems that Thor 4 should begin production by next year because why would WB want to halt production of Akira for 3 years? It’s all quite confusing. Moreover, if the production of Thor 4 starts in 2020, then we can be certain that Marvel will release it in November 2021. That would mean that they’re also planning to deliver Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 by May 2021. Thor cannot just drop out of the Guardians movie without an explanation. It’d be a total waste as people are actually looking forward to Thor’s adventures with the Guardians.
So, according to what makes sense right now, Marvel seems to be releasing Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 in May 2021, and that’d be followed by Thor 4 in November. That would mean that James Gunn would wrap up the production and the post-production of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 even before The Suicide Squad. It’s just crazy!
Another question that we have about this is that will Marvel be pushing back 2 of the 3 films that were earlier supposed to come out in 2021? Doctor Strange 2, Black Panther 2 & Shang Chi were the projects Marvel seemed to have prioritized. Doctor Strange 2 is supposed to go under production next year, so Shang Chi and Black Panther 2 are the films Marvel will seemingly put out in 2022. All of this is confusing. Marvel has to make things clear at San Diego Comic Con.
As far as Thor’s adventures in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 are concerned, Thor will certainly be in the film and it will happen before Thor 4. Here’s what he said about his excitement to play Thor in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3:
“I’d play that character [Thor] again. I love it so much – especially if there’s something unique to do again with it. I felt like the last three films were very, very different each time. It really felt like a totally different character. And I don’t even know when or if they’re shooting [Guardians of the Galaxy 3]. I’ll work with any of those guys. Asgardians of the Galaxy. That’s actually great. You might’ve just got me my next job. Thank you, man.”
Let’s see how things pan out.
