10 Most Exciting New Faces Coming To The MCU

Taika Waititi's new direction unveiled in Thor: Ragnorok took everyone by surprise. Instead of broody Scandinavian deities having smoldering competitions, we got bright, colourful, jazzy aliens having a ridiculously good time. The cast of Thor liked what Taika brought to the table that the likes of Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson really fought to keep his vision going throughout Infinity War and Endgame. Now that Waititi is back to write direct the fourquel, Thor: Love and Thunder, he'll be delighted that his new iteration of these characters were cemented in the MCU canon.

Something that really worked in Thor: Ragnorok was the use of contrast between its characters. Jovial Thor complimented his Trickster brother Loki, yet clashed awfully with the slightly damaged, no-nonsense Valkyrie. Meanwhile, everyone - and I mean everyone - looked stupid compared to the cool elegance of Cate Blanchette's Hela. It's a shame she had her own plans of universal domination which required halting, because she and Thanos going head to head would have been an incredible battle - or it might have just ended up in a competition to see who had the silkiest voice. The subtle ridiculousness of Thor having to deal with an estranged, murderous sister whilst also coping with another already scheming sibling, and babysitting an alcoholic warrior and an anxious wreck of a Hulk was the crux of the majority of this film's humour.

We may once again have a Thor villain who is too cool for Waititi, since Christian Bale has been cast as the main villain. His role has yet to be confirmed, but speculation is rampant. Perhaps he'll appear as Beta Ray Bill, who was cut from the last film's script? Balder the Brave? Or perhaps the rock goblin Ulik, whose hatred of all Asgardians leads to repeated attempts to vanquish the race. Considering his comic storylines include kidnapping Jane Foster and later becoming a God of Thunder himself, it's easy to see how this could be incorporated into Thor: Love and Thunder. (Jane is rumoured to attain the powers of Thor in this outing - perhaps Ulik would protest this move and seek them for himself?)

We probably won't find out the real answer for a little while, but in the meantime we can at least commend this casting choice. Bale has already had a good run in comic book movies: The Dark Knight Trilogy helped put the genre on a map at a time when most saw comic films as glorified kids' shows. Seriously, compare the first X-Men film to Logan, and marvel at how far we've come in a decade or two.

Christian Bale has been a lot of things in his 30 year career, from suave businessmen with a secret side-gig of vigilantism, a serial killer, and an overweight hustler. Whether Taika wants him to bring his serious hat or his comedy hat, Bale is versatile enough to manage pretty much anything you throw at him.