Thor: Love and Thunder will use the same virtual production techniques as The Mandalorian. Fans were taken by surprise last year when Marvel announced Love and Thunder, the fourth solo film starring Chris Hemsworth's God of Thunder. This will mark the first time an MCU hero has scored a fourth movie, and anticipation is high. Love and Thunder will reunite Hemsworth with his Thor: Ragnarok director Taika Waititi and bring back previous franchise stars Tessa Thompson and Natalie Portman. Portman's return in particular is rather exciting since her character, Jane Foster, hasn't been seen since 2013's Thor: The Dark World.

Love and Thunder will see Jane assume the mantle of the Mighty Thor, just like she did in the comics. Beyond that, very few plot details have been revealed, though Waititi described the film as "very romantic." Christian Bale is also set to play the still-unnamed villain. Love and Thunder was originally scheduled for release in November 2021, but the coronavirus pandemic forced Marvel to shuffle just about all of their Phase 4 premiere dates. As a result, the film is currently slated for February 2022.

Related: Thor 4: Predicting Love & Thunder's Villain

More behind the scenes information about Love and Thunder has emerged thanks to THR, which has revealed the film will utilize the same techniques as the hit Disney+ series The Mandalorian. Industrial Light & Magic, the VFX branch of Lucasfilm, will grow its virtual production services to support various projects, with Love and Thunder being one of them. ILM is developing new locations for their StageCraft LED sets, and a custom volume one will be installed at Fox Studios Australia for Love and Thunder's use. Waititi previously used virtual production when he directed an episode of The Mandalorian.

It's worth mentioning that one of the 15 Emmys The Mandalorian is nominated for is for visual effects, so this bodes well for Love and Thunder. In fact, it will be interesting to see how these techniques work when applied to a major feature film, especially one that's bound to have some truly epic cosmic visuals. Production on Love and Thunder was rumored to begin in early 2021, though Portman's recent sighting in Australia has led some to wonder if it could start sooner.

2017's Ragnarok was the most colorful Thor film yet, and the hope is that Waititi will continue to enliven the once-stuffy franchise. It's almost certain this will be Hemsworth's last MCU film, so it really needs to act as a proper, fitting sendoff. So far, though, Love and Thunder appears to be in good hands. It's just a shame it's still well over a year away.

More: Thor 4 Theory: Why Endgame's Fat Thor Won't Return In Love & Thunder

Source: THR

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