Though fans seem to agree that “Thor: Love and Thunder” didn’t get everything right for Valkyrie, they also agree that her wardrobe was not one of those things — particularly a certain sweatshirt she wore. And in a new video, Taika Waititi and Tessa Thompson broke down exactly how that fashion choice was made.
As the action truly begins in “Love and Thunder,” with Gorr the God Butcher (Christian Bale) attacking New Asgard with the help of his shadow demons, we see Valk once again ready for battle. Only this time, instead of her sleek white valkyrie armor, she’s simply wearing a “Phantom of the Opera” sweatshirt that she was sleeping in (the attack happened in the dead of night after all).
It’s a small thing, and yet fans latched onto it immediately — something both Thompson and Waititi noticed. So, they made sure to give credit where it was due. In Vanity Fair’s “Notes on a Scene” series, the duo revealed that the inspiration for that particular Valkyrie look came from Waititi’s co-writer.
“That came from — Jenn [Kaytin] Robinson, who wrote on the film, was wearing that one time, when you first met her,” Thompson reminded her co-star and director. “And then we were talking about, like ‘Is [Valkyrie] a basketball fan? Yeah. Musical theater fan, definitely.”
Waititi excitedly agreed, remembering that the decision to put Valkyrie in the same sweatshirt was almost immediate. But, according to Thompson, it wasn’t necessarily always going to be a “Phantom” nod.
“CATS also was a strong contender,” she admitted.
You can watch the full conversation in the video above.