Tessa Thompson quickly established herself as a fan-favorite with her portrayal as the booze-swigging, tough-as-nails (yet tender-hearted) Brunnhilde, AKA Valkyrie in Thor: Ragnarok and luckily, those of you wanting to see more of the newly appointed “King of the Asgardians” will see a whole lot more of both her and diversity across the board in Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
“I think in this next phase of Marvel, we’re really talking about what representation looks like in those spaces,” Thompson explained in a Variety actors on actor interview. “Because the truth is these movies travel globally in such huge ways, and if you can represent people that are of color, if you can represent people with disabilities, if you can represent the LGBTQIA community inside of these films, it’s a pretty big deal.”
“There’s millions and millions of people, particularly young people, that show up to the cinema. And I think if you can show them something that looks like them, they feel valued. Particularly inside of these narratives of the comic books, that’s what it’s all about. It’s that our differences make us special.”
Thompson’s comments seem to come with auspicious timing, as Falcon actor Anthony Mackie, upcoming star of Disney+ series The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, recently criticized the Marvel Cinematic Universe for their lack of representation.
“It really bothered me that I’ve done seven Marvel movies where every producer, every director, every stunt person, every costume designer, every PA, every single person has been white,” Mackie said in an interview with Daveed Diggs. “But then when you do Black Panther, you have a Black director, Black producer, a Black costume designer, a Black stunt choreographer. And I’m like, that’s more racist than anything else. Because if you only can hire the Black people for the Black movie, are you saying they’re not good enough when you have a mostly white cast?”
One such example of more inclusive representation will be the forthcoming The Eternals film, which will feature the first openly gay character: “He’s married, he’s got a family, and that is just part of who he is,” Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige said at the D23 Expo in California.
Feige has already gone on record in the past to say that Valkyrie would be getting a LGBTQ+ storyline in the upcoming Thor: Love and Thunder and Thompson added to the movie’s description. “As new king, she needs to find her queen. That will be her first order of business. She has some ideas. Keep you posted.”
What do you think of the Marvel Cinematic Universe including more diversity and representation in its character for Phase 4? Let us know in the comments.
