Posted in: Disney+, Marvel, Preview, streaming, TV | Tagged: loki, marvel, preview, season 2, tom hiddleston

Loki S02: Tom Hiddleston Says God of Mischief Has "Stuff to Unpack"

With all of this Marvel Studios talk going around this week, it seems like now is as good of a time as any to check in again with how things are looking with the second season of Disney+ & Marvel Studios' Tom Hiddleston & Owen Wilson-starring Loki (rumored to start filming its second season this spring/summer). And while this one may be straightforward and to-the-point, let's just say that Hiddleston knows how to drop a ten-ton tease when he needs to. Speaking with Total Film for an interview covering his career and in support of his new Apple TV+ series The Essex Serpent, the actor was asked if there was anything he could share about what's to come for The God of Mischief. "What can I say? It's very much continuing to excite and challenge me… At the end of season 1, the story isn't over. I think that's really clear," Hiddleston explained. "Loki's almost more unstable and as turbulent and passionate and chaotic as he's ever been. And maybe some of that needs resolution. There's stuff to unpack."

In February, it was announced that directors Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead (Moon Knight, Archive 81) were boarding the second season to helm the majority of the season's episodes. Speaking with CB.com, Benson and Moorhead explained why they're attracted to characters like Loki & Moon Knight, and why The God of Mischief's new season needs to be "something new and fresh":

So Why Loki & Moon Knight? "We know that the thing that appeals to us about Loki and Moon Knight specifically, it's just among the MCU, they feel like outsiders. And there's something about that that we really relate with," explained Benson.

Viewers Can Expect the "Unexpected" with "Loki" Season 2: "I think the biggest thing about Loki is just that it's actually a lot like Moon Knight, where there's just no reason to do it if it's not going to be something new and fresh. It's funny is, it does feel like Marvel would be willing to walk away unless it actually is something that they felt the unexpected. Like from Moon Knight and especially because Moon Knight is a character where nobody knows almost anything about him, yet. Soon to be changed, right? And so our gloves are off and we get to kind of do whatever we want. And everybody at Marvel and ourselves gets really excited when we are presented with the unexpected. We also, of course, hope that people watching feel the same way and we're gonna bring all that to Loki," Moorhead revealed.

At a time when a number of familiar faces such as Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Evans have moved on from the MCU, and Mark Ruffalo joking about passing the "banner" onto Tatiana Maslany in the upcoming She-Hulk, Hiddleston's thoughts on his time as The God of Mischief also seem to have a ring of "endgame" (you're welcome) to them. "I'm a temporary torchbearer. I've always thought that," Hiddleston revealed during an event hosted by the Royal Television Society earlier this month that also included Season 1 showrunner, writer & EP Michael Waldron, first season director Kate Herron (via Zoom), and co-star Sophia Di Martino (Sylvie). "It's a great role. It's an archetype, the trickster god, the agent of chaos. I'm just here interpreting that for the time being. Loki has been here for centuries and will be here for centuries more and I'm just stepping into that silhouette for now."

For Hiddleston, it was the streaming series' focus on the themes of identity & acceptance that drew him to the project because of how well they hit at the heart of the Asgardian. "This idea of somehow the [Time Variance Authority] confronting Loki with the shape-shifting nature of his identity and asking him 'Who are you?' I found it a new avenue to explore with this character I've been playing for a while. It felt original. It didn't feel like we were repeating," he explained. But soon, Hiddleston realized that the series was also touching upon much larger and bolder themes. "Michael [Waldron] and I were having breakfast a couple of years ago when [he'd] written that first pilot and found ourselves talking about psychoanalytic theory and repetition compulsion and [the question of] can you ever change? Is it possible for people to change? Even if you do will people accept that you've changed? Is it possible to know yourself entirely?" Hiddleston explained. "And then Owen [Wilson] came and was so forensic about examining all of that stuff, and then we realized we were in a police detective thriller. When I was cast as Loki however many years ago, I never thought this character is a detective. But he is here."

Now here's a look back at how it all began with the official trailer for the Disney+ and Marvel Studios series:

Kate Herron (Sex Education) directed and executive produced, and Michael Waldron (Heels, Rick and Morty) served as head writer and executive producer on Loki, which finds Hiddleston's God of Mischief on the run and on a mission during his unexpected, time-traveling walkabout. Joining Hiddleston is Owen Wilson as TVA Agent Mobius M. Mobius, Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Ravonna Lexus Renslayer, Wunmi Mosaku as Hunter B-15, Tara Strong as the voice of Miss Minutes, Sophia Di Martino as Sylvie, Richard E. Grant, Sasha Lane, Erika Coleman, and Eugene Cordero.

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