Tessa Thompson Explains how she Made Valkyrie Her Own in ‘Thor: Ragnarok’
Finally bringing Valkyrie into the Marvel Cinematic Universe was an exciting prospect for many fans. Casting Tessa Thompson as the Norse mythological figure was even more intriguing.
In an interview with Collider, Thompson discussed how she and director Taika Waititi tried to stay true to the comics, while making their Valkyrie feel fresh.
Tessa Thompson and Chris Hemsworth in Thor: Ragnarok. Source: Entertainment Weekly
“In the beginning, when Valkyrie’s on Sakaar, she’s closer to the Valkyrie that fans might know from the comics,” said Thompson. “Then she changes to a sort of classic battle look that is closer to what she would have worn when she was with the other Valkyrie. The designs are incredible. They’re so detailed.”
One of Thompson’s biggest challenges was figuring out her Asgardian accent.
“When I met Taika and he heard me as Valkyrie, he wanted ‘me’ to play the part. But then you watch the Thor movies, there’s this Asgardian thing that I could not get out of my head,” she said. “Then you read the source material and anytime Valkyrie speaks it’s in those cool italics — so I’m like, ‘She has an accent!’ And Taika’s like, ‘It doesn’t matter. They won’t care.’”
The actress even got some fun advice from one of her legendary co-stars.
“Even Tony Hopkins, who I worked with recently on the show Westworld, was like ‘Oh darling, it doesn’t matter, they’ll be eating popcorn.’ That’s literally what he said to me,” she continued.
Tessa Thompson’s Valkyrie is the one who brings Thor to Sakaar in Thor: Ragnarok. Source: Collider
After a lot of debate and research, Thompson found Valkyrie’s voice.
“But I’m a nerd and I go back to the source material and I’m like, ‘I have to speak in italics.’ I don’t know how else to approach the part,” she said. “So we settled on something that felt like it honors Asgard.”
Thor: Ragnarok hits theaters Nov. 3 and stars Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Cate Blanchett, Mark Ruffalo, Idris Elba, Tessa Thompson, Karl Urban, Jeff Goldblum and Anthony Hopkins.
Following Ragnarok, Hemsworth, Ruffalo and Thompson will team up with the rest of the MCU to fight the Mad Titan Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War May 4, 2018.
Are you excited to see Thompson’s take on Valkyrie?
Source: Comic Book
