Thor: Love and Thunder Director Debunks Huge Rumor About Silver Surfer

Taika Waititi has jumped down off the top rope to deliver a piledriver to baseless internet rumors. While hosting a watch party on Instagram Live Thursday evening for Thor: Ragnarok, the director fielded questions about the upcoming Thor: Love and Thunder including answering questions about the likes of Beta Ray Bill, Loki, and some classic villains that will appear. Waititi was also asked about the rumors that the Silver Surfer will appear in the film, denying that not only is Christian Bale not playing the Silver Surfer but that the cosmic Marvel character will not appear in the film at all.

Some of the biggest cosmic Marvel characters returned to the House of Ideas after the Disney-Fox merger was completed as heroes like the Fantastic Four and the Silver Surfer returned to Marvel along with villains like Annihilus, Galactus, and many of its alien species. It would make sense to see those characters start to make their presence known across Phase 4 and beyond, but Marvel's Kevin Feige has previously hinted that they're all in the works for the MCU, announcing at San Diego Comic-Con last year that the Fantastic Four and X-Men are in development. Feige explained that he's focused on giving Marvel's First Family the attention and respect they deserve and doesn't plan to rush their MCU debuts.

"All of that is spoilers, but I'm extremely excited about those characters, and about bringing Marvel's first family up to the sort of platform and level they deserve," Feige said at the time..

He also explained to MTV News that he's more excited for the plethora of characters that come along in the deal, and that the future of Marvel will be exciting for everyone.

"The truth is, I'm excited for all of them. I'm excited, and it's not just the marquee names you know — there are hundreds of names on those documents, on those agreements," Feige said at the Golden Globes. "And the fact that Marvel is as close as we may ever get now to having access to all of the characters, is something I've been dreaming about for my almost 20 years at Marvel. And it's very exciting."

Production on Thor: Love and Thunder was scheduled to begin at the end of this summer but due to the spread of the coronavirus, the entire Phase 4 slate from Marvel Studios has been delayed. Love and Thunder was originally scheduled to debut on November 5, 2021 but will now arrive in theaters on February 18, 2022, in place of a previously-unannounced movie in which Marvel had the date reserved.