Thor: Love and Thunder Casting Mysterious New Child Character, Could It Be Kid Loki?

A new report suggests Marvel fans may get to see a new side of Loki in the upcoming film Thor: Love and Thunder. The Illuminerdi reports that it has learned of a new casting call for a young black male age 11 or 12 for a role referred to as "Zappa." There are a few possibilities as to who this character could be. This could be an original character created for the film. It could be, as The Illuminerdi theorizes, Heimdall reborn in a new body. But another possibility is that Thor: Love and Thunder will introduce Kid Loki to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This would mean changing the Asgardian's race in his new, younger form, but given that we're dealing with gods, that shouldn't be too hard to explain.

We already expect to see Loki's form change — or at least be represented differently — in the upcoming Loki television series on Disney+. The show is expected to introduce a female Loki as Thor's wayward brother travels through the multiverse. If that's the case, then it'd be a natural extension of that story to have Loki appear in another form in Thor: Love and Thunder.

Kid Loki was a new Loki born after the original Loki died during Marvel Comics event Siege. This Loki turned out to be a kind of failsafe set up by the original Loki, who returned to assume control of Kid Loki's body and life. The ultimate trick was that Kid Loki, a more heroic version of the god of mischief, left an indelible mark on Loki, changing his personality in a way Loki could not reverse.

All of that said, director Taika Waititi isn't ready to confirm whether Loki is in Thor: Love and Thunder at all, though it seemed like he almost gave up the secret during his Thor: Ragnarok watch party. "Oh, ye… I can't say," he began before explaining that it isn't entirely up to him. "If I had wanted to kill Loki for some reason, I would ask about it and Marvel might have told me that they needed him for Infinity War. That's how I usually find out about the stuff that's coming up."

Michael Waldron, the showrunner for the Loki series, has hinted that identity will be a big theme in Loki's upcoming arc. "I think it's the struggle with identity, who you are, who you want to be. I'm really drawn to characters who are fighting for control," Waldron said during a recent podcast appearance. "Certainly you see that with Loki over the first 10 years of movies, he's out of control at pivotal parts of his life, he was adopted and everything and that manifest itself through anger and spite towards his family."

Tom Hiddleston reprises his role as Loki in the Disney+ series. "I know this character now. I feel that the audience knows him. And playing him — and playing him truthfully, but presenting him with new challenges, which then I'd have to change him in different ways, is the most exciting aspect of it," Hiddleston said during an interview. "You've got his very specific gifts. His intelligence, treachery, his mischief, his magic, and then seeing him come up against more formidable opponents, the like of which he has never seen or known. I wish I could tell you what happens, but I can't."

Thor: Love and Thunder is scheduled to open in theaters on February 11, 2022. Loki does not have an official premiere date.