Loki (TV series)

Loki is an upcoming American television series created by Michael Waldron for the streaming service Disney+, based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. It is set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), sharing continuity with the films of the franchise. The series takes place after the events of the film Avengers: Endgame (2019), in which an alternate version of Loki created a new timeline. Loki is produced by Marvel Studios, with Waldron serving as head writer and Kate Herron directing for the first season.

Loki
Genre
Created byMichael Waldron
Based on
Written byMichael Waldron
Directed byKate Herron
Starring
ComposerNatalie Holt
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
Production
Executive producers
  • Kevin Feige
  • Michael Waldron
  • Stephen Broussard
  • Kate Herron
Production locationsAtlanta, Georgia
CinematographyAutumn Durald
Running time40–50 minutes
Production companyMarvel Studios
DistributorDisney Platform Distribution
Release
Original networkDisney+
Chronology
Related showsMarvel Cinematic Universe television series
External links
Production website

Tom Hiddleston reprises his role as Loki from the film series. Owen Wilson also stars. By September 2018, Marvel Studios was developing a number of limited series for Disney+, centered on supporting characters from the MCU films. One on Loki was confirmed in November 2018, along with Hiddleston's involvement. Waldron was hired in February 2019, and Herron had joined by that August. Filming began in January 2020 in Atlanta, Georgia, but was halted in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Production resumed in September 2020 and completed that December.

Loki is scheduled to premiere in May 2021, and its first season will consist of six episodes. It will be part of Phase Four of the MCU. A second season is in development.

Premise

Loki is brought to the mysterious Time Variance Authority organization after stealing the Tesseract during the events of Avengers: Endgame (2019), and travels through time altering human history using it, ending up trapped in his own crime thriller.[1][2]

Cast and characters

Main

Additionally, Gugu Mbatha-Raw portrays a member of the TVA,[4] while Sophia Di Martino,[5] Sasha Lane,[6] and Wunmi Mosaku have been cast in undisclosed roles.[7]

Guest

Episodes
No.TitleDirected by [9]Written byOriginal release date
1TBAKate HerronMichael Waldron[10]May 2021 (2021-05)[1]

Production

Development

By September 2018, Marvel Studios was developing several limited series for its parent company Disney's streaming service, Disney+, to be centered on supporting characters from the Marvel Cinematic Universe films who had not starred in their own films, such as Loki; the actors who portrayed the characters in the films were expected to reprise their roles for the limited series. The series were expected to be six to eight episodes each and have a "hefty [budget] rivaling those of a major studio production". The series would be produced by Marvel Studios, rather than Marvel Television which produced previous television series in the MCU. Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige was believed to be taking a "hands-on role" in each series' development,[11] focusing on "continuity of story" with the films and "handling" the actors who would be reprising their roles from the films.[12] Disney CEO Bob Iger confirmed in November that a series centered on Loki was in development and that Tom Hiddleston was expected to reprise his role from the film series.[13]

Michael Waldron was hired as head writer and executive producer of the series in February 2019. He was also set to write the first episode. The series was expected to follow Loki as he "pops up throughout human history as an unlikely influencer on historical events".[10] A month later, Feige stated that Loki is over a thousand years old in the MCU films, so the series would be exploring what he has done throughout his long life. He added that the interest for Marvel Studios in making the series was to work with Hiddleston more and explore the character of Loki beyond him being a supporting character in the films.[14] Hiddleston explained in August 2019 that he had known about his cameo role in Avengers: Endgame (2019) when he filmed Loki's death for Avengers: Infinity War (2018), but he considered the latter to be the emotional end of his character arc. He then learned about the plans for a Loki series around six weeks before Infinity War was released, and kept the series a secret until its official announcement later that year. He expressed excitement about being able to change Loki in different ways by taking an earlier version of the character and "seeing him come up against more formidable opponents, the like of which he has never seen".[15] Also that month, Kate Herron was revealed to be directing and executive producing the first season, which was confirmed to run for six episodes.[9][16][17] The episodes will be 40–50 minutes in length.[18]

Development on a second season had begun by November 2020,[19] with Waldron expected to once again be involved "in some capacity" by January 2021 as part of an overall deal with Disney.[20]

Writing
Hiddleston promoting the series at the 2019 San Diego Comic-Con

The series takes place after Avengers: Endgame, which saw Loki steal the Tesseract during the 2012 events of The Avengers (2012),[21] which created an alternate timeline from the main MCU films.[22] In the series, Loki uses the Tesseract to travel through time and alter human history.[2][1] In August 2019, Herron stated that the series would be "taking Loki to an entirely new part of the MCU" while Waldron said it would "explore the questions we all have: where did Loki go after he picked up the Tesseract? Could Loki ever make a friend? And will the sun ever shine on him again?"[9] Executive producer Stephen Broussard stated that in addition to the time travel element, the series would have a "man-on-the-run quality to it".[23] Waldron also felt the series would explore the character's "struggle with identity", adding "over the first 10 years of movies, he's out of control at pivotal parts of his life, he was adopted and everything and that manifest itself through anger and spite towards his family."[24] Waldron added there would be an "unexpected" science fiction quality to the series.[25] The four-issue comic miniseries Vote Loki served as an inspiration for one of Loki's looks in the series,[4] which also explores mysterious conspiracies and bending reality.[1] According to Feige, the series will tie-into the Phase Four film Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022).[26]

Casting

With the November 2018 announcement of the series, Hiddleston was expected to reprise his role as Loki,[13] with his involvement confirmed in February 2019 by Walt Disney Studios chairman Alan F. Horn.[3] In November 2019, Sophia Di Martino was cast in a "highly contested" unspecified role,[5] reported to be a female incarnation of Loki.[27] In January 2020, Owen Wilson joined the cast as "a prominent character",[28] followed the next month with the casting of Gugu Mbatha-Raw as the female lead, also said to be "a prominent character".[29]

In March 2020, Richard E. Grant was cast in an undisclosed role for a single episode of the series.[8] That September, Sasha Lane was revealed to have also been cast in an undisclosed role,[6] and in December, Wunmi Mosaku's casting was revealed,[7] while Jaimie Alexander had the potential to reprise her role as Sif from past Thor films.[30]

Filming

Filming began in January 2020,[31][28] with Herron directing,[9] and Autumn Durald serving as cinematographer.[17] The series was filmed under the working titles River Cruise and Architect for the first season.[32][33][34] Location shooting took place in the Atlanta metropolitan area throughout the month of February.[35] On March 14, filming for the series was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[36] Production resumed at Pinewood Atlanta Studios in September.[37][38] By mid-November, approximately one more month of shooting remained;[39] production on the series wrapped by mid-December.[40]

The second season is scheduled to begin filming in January 2022, also under the working title Architect.[19][41]

Music

By January 2021, Natalie Holt was composing music for the series.[42]

Marketing

A commercial for the series, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, and WandaVision was shown during Super Bowl LIV.[43] Julia Alexander of The Verge said the footage "wasn't much" but offered "enough glimpses to tease fans".[44] Haleigh Foutch at Collider felt of all the Super Bowl commercials, Marvel's teasers "stole the whole show" and had "a lot to get excited about".[45] A trailer for the series was released during Disney Investor Day in December 2020. Writers for Polygon said Loki "finally feels untethered by the grounded approaches of the early Thor movies", and based on the content of the trailer and given the series deals with alternate realities, the series might try to "explain" certain phenomena such as Loki being D. B. Cooper or features worlds where urban legends such as the fictitious video game Polybius exist.[4] John Boon writing for Entertainment Tonight called the trailer a "bonkers first look".[7] /Film's Hoai-Tran Bui said the scenes in the trailer was "very intriguing, cryptic stuff" and was surprised to learn the series is more than "just the time-hopping series we assumed" and would deal "with mysterious conspiracies and reality-bending organizations".[1]

In January 2021, Marvel announced their "Marvel Must Haves" program, which reveals new toys, games, books, apparel, home decor, and other merchandise related to each episode of Loki the Monday following an episode's release.[46]

Release

Loki will debut on Disney+ in May 2021,[1] and will consist of six episodes.[16] It will be part of Phase Four of the MCU.[47]

References
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  2. Steele, Sean (August 11, 2019). "Exclusive: New Details on 'Loki' Disney+ Series, How It Will Tie Into 'Thor: Love & Thunder'". FandomWire. Archived from the original on August 12, 2019. Retrieved August 12, 2019.
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