Christian Bale is going bald in preparation for his upcoming big-budget Marvel Studios' venture,Thor: Love and Thunder. The fourth Thor movie is currently under production with director Taika Waititi and the rest of the film’s cast down in Australia. Christian Bale will portray the superviallain, Gorr The God Butcher. The character is from an unknown alien race in the comics and has a horrifyying look, pretty much raising the bar for other supervillains. This means that the character will probably be CGI-based to a large extent, but given Bale’s committed, methodological approach towards his characters, he is probably trying to settle into the character, to achieve a certain depth in his portrayal.
In recently revealed set photos,Christian Balecan be seen sporting a shaved head and comparatively leaner physique on the sets ofThor 4.
It’s not the first time Christian Bale hasundergone severe physical changesto fit into a character. He is notoriously famous for losing more than fifty pounds forThe Machinist, which was followed byBatman Begins, a film in which he surprisingly got back his chiseled body. He also put on drastic weight for his filmsAmerican HustleandVice, while staying in his lean, wasted physique, perfect for a drug-addict character inThe Fighter. Once again going deep into the character wouldn’t be really a surprise for viewers.
The details surrounding what reiterations this version ofGorr the God Butcherwill embrace are still under wraps. It’s expected that the film will delve into Gorr’s origin; however, the film might just have him drop into Thor’s life with his villainous streak of “butchering” Gods.
Since Gorr is associated with powers like teleportation through different times, there are even anticipations of having some multiverse-themed subplot, something which would’ve probably be hinted already by the timeThor: Love And Thunderwill release, in previous Marvel Cinematic Universe installments,Spider-Man: No Way HomeandDoctor Strange: Multiverse of Madness.
Bale being the villain of a Marvel Studios film is ironic as he portrayed the most liked version of DC Comics character, Bruce Wayne/Batman in Christopher Nolan’sThe Dark Knight Trilogy. He is finally living up to Harvey Dent’s “live long enough to see yourself become the villain” theory.
Christian Bale is not the only surprise casting ofThor: Love And Thunder. The film will seeNatalie Portman returning as Jane Foster, this time taking up the mantle of Mighty Thor. On the other hand, Tessa Thompson will reprise her role of Valkyrie, king of New Asgard. The film will also see Jaimie Alexander returning as Sif, while Academy Award-winnter Russell Crowe has been cast in an undisclosed role. It has also been confirmed that the entire cast ofGuardians of the Galaxyteam members will appear in the film.
Thor: Love And Thunderis expected to be an amalgamation of adventure and humor just like its predecessor, which actually raised bars for other solo superhero outings within the MCU. The film will release on July 30, 2025, as per the new release slate of Marvel Studios, and will take place in Phase Four of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
