Thor: Love & Thunder has added Oscar-winning actor Russell Crowe to the cast.
According to Deadline, director Taiki Waititi wanted to keep his appearance a surprise, but photos surfaced of the actor with other members of the production.
There is no word on whether or not Crowe will play a major role or just end up as a fun cameo like Matt Damon in Thor: Ragnarok.
Russell Crowe in Thor: Love & Thunder
Russell Crowe, who last appeared in a superhero movie as Superman’s dad Jor-El in Man of Steel. He is also an Oscar-winning actor, winning the statue for Best Actor in 2001 for Gladiator. He was also nominated in 2000 for The Insider and 2002 for A Beautiful Mind.
Reports indicate he signed on for a role in Thor: Love & Thunder, but the production never clarified one way or the other. However, Crowe was seen with his fellow cast members at a rugby match over the weekend.
Crowe’s role was reportedly supposed to be kept as a surprise for fans, so it looks like he might end up as nothing more than a fun cameo in the movie.
Thor: Love & Thunder cast details
If Russell Crowe is just a small cameo, he might end up in the scenes rumored to be another Asgardian play, such as the one shown in Thor: Ragnarok.
Matt Damon has already signed on to return, and he was part of that original play along with Luke Hemsworth and Sam Neill. Melissa McCarthy has signed on to play “Hela,” which is almost surely for the scene with the play.
They join a stacked cast.
Chris Hemsworth returns as Thor while Natalie Portman will make her first appearance in a Thor movie since Thor: Dark World as Jane Foster. She will become the new Lady Thor.
Tessa Thompson will be back as Valkyrie after Thor left her in charge of Asgard at the end of Avengers: Endgame.
Also returning is Jamie Alexander as Sif, after she sat out the past few movies as well.
The Guardians of the Galaxy cast are all set to appear in Thor: Love & Thunder as well, with the exception of Gamora. There is no word on the size of their roles, but they are expected to be only in the movie for a short time.
The biggest new signing is Christian Bale as the villain, Gorr the God Butcher. Bale is best known to comic book fans as Batman in Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight Trilogy.
Thor: Love & Thunder hits theaters on May 6, 2022.