Jeff Goldblum Studies Up For Thor: Ragnarok

Thor: Ragnarok's Jeff Goldblum is preparing for his role as the villainous Grandmaster in the best way he can -- by reading old Thor comics.

Also, he's taking pictures of himself reading those comics even though it looks suspiciously like he might be reading them in the bathroom.

If he is, though, that's a fun little Jeff Goldblum Easter egg, since back in The Big Chill he lamented working in entertainment journalism.

"Where I work we have only one editorial rule: you can't write anything longer than the average person can read during the average crap," said Goldblum's character in that film, which was written and directed by the writer of Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Empire Strikes Back. "I'm tired of having all my work read in the can."

The issue in question, Walter Simonson's The Mighty Thor #374, doesn't actually feature the character Goldblum will be playing -- but it's not as though a comic guest-starring X-Factor (a property whose movie rights reside at 20th Century Fox) was was ever going to be particularly illuminating on plans for the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Simonson's run on Thor is widely considered to be the best modern take on the character, and each of the three movies have owed at least some debt to Simonson's work. Walter and Louise Simonson -- his wife, who is herself an accomplished comic book writer and editor -- had a cameo appearance in Thor.

Of note: John Workman, the letterer on The Mighty Thor #374, last week won a Harvey Award for Best Letterer...for his work on Walter Simonson's IDW Publishing series Ragnarok.

Thor: Ragnarok is in production now in Australia. It's being directed by Taika Waititi with a screenplay by Stephany Folsom, and stars Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Idris Elba, Anthony Hopkins, Cate Blanchett, Tessa Thompson, Karl Urban and Mark Ruffalo (as well as Goldblum, obviously).

Doctor Strange arrives November 4, 2016; Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 – May 5, 2017;Spider-Man: Homecoming– July 7, 2017; Thor: Ragnarok – November 3, 2017; Black Panther – February 16, 2018; Avengers: Infinity War – May 4, 2018; Ant-Man and the Wasp – July 6, 2018; Captain Marvel– March 8, 2019; Avengers 4 – May 3, 2019; and as-yet untitled Marvel movies on July 12, 2019, and on May 1, July 10, and November 6 in 2020.