Taika Waititi Directed Marvel Movies So He Could ‘Feed’ His Kids

Taika Waititi never wanted to be a part of the Marvel universe. The director, who helmed 2017’s Thor: Ragnarok and 2022’s Thor: Love and Thunder, opened up about the real reason he stepped into the franchise while appearing on an episode of the SmartLess podcast this week.

“You know what? I had no interest in doing one of those films,” Waititi said. “It wasn’t on my plan for my career as an auteur. But I was poor and I’d just had a second child, and I thought, ‘You know what, this would be a great opportunity to feed these children.'”

He added, “And Thor, let’s face it, it was probably the least popular franchise. I never read Thor comics as a kid. That was the comic I’d pick up and be like ‘Ugh.’ And then I did some research on it, and I read one Thor comic or 18 pages, or however long they are. I was still baffled by this character.”

Both of Waititi’s Marvel films generated staggering box office numbers, with Thor: Ragnarok bringing in more than $855 million worldwide and Thor: Love and Thunder grossing $760 million.

When asked by Business Insider if he’d consider returning for Thor 5, Waititi replied that he “won’t be involved,” noting that he’s focusing on other films on his roster.

The director is busy working on penning a new Star Wars movie and adapting Alejandro Jodorowsky’s graphic novel “The Incal” for the big screen. His new film, Next Goal Wins, is out in theaters now.

“It’s my comfort zone to have a lot of things on,” he told Wired UK in 2021, adding that after years of struggle, he’s leaning into this stage of productivity and success. “That chaos is where my best work comes from. Someone said to me, ‘You need a break, man.’ Yeah, but I feel like I was on a break for 35 years. I’m working now. I don’t want to stop.”

 Taika Waititi opened up about the real reason he took a job working for Marvel, explaining that it had everything to do with his family.  Read More