A Thor: Love & Thunder deleted scene confirms another Greek God exists in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. With Thanos defeated and his family dead, Thor Odinson (Chris Hemsworth) searches for a new purpose in his life as he struggles to pick up the pieces following the devastating events of Avengers: Endgame. However, when Gorr the God Butcher (Christian Bale) sets off on a mission to wipe out all gods, Thor leaves the Guardians of the Galaxy and reunites with his best friend Korg (Taika Waititi), the Asgardian warrior King Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson), and former love interest Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), now the Mighty Thor, to take on the new villain.
SCREENRANT VIDEO OF THE DAY
Thor: Love & Thunder uses the Gorr plot to introduce new mythological locations and figures. Midway through the film, Thor and his allies travel to Omnipotence City, an opulent floating metropolis that houses a parliament of gods. There, they attempt to enlist the help of the Greek god Zeus (Russell Crowe) and his many immortal followers to attack Gorr and stop his nefarious plans. However, Zeus, who fears Gorr, decides it's best to stay within the city and denies Thor's request for assistance, forcing the heroes to challenge Gorr on their own.
Now, a new Thor: Love & Thunder deleted scene (via IGN) reveals an extended look at the Greek God Dionysus. Played by Penny Dreadful's Simon Russell Beale, the god greets Thor, Valkyrie, and Korg and informs them of Zeus' meeting with the rest of the gods. Check out the scene below.
Dionysus, the Greek God of wine and pleasure, is humorously portrayed by Beale as an egotistical self-indulgent fool. Although the Thor: Love & Thunder scene properly introduces the god, it is clear why the moment was cut from the final film. The only new information given is that Zeus will host an assembly of the gods, giving Thor an opportunity to voice his concerns with everyone. However, the final film eliminates the scene in favor of a faster infiltration of the gods' meeting. Like many of the Guardians of the Galaxy's scenes, the Dionysus moment was likely removed to maintain steady pacing throughout the film, as well as a sense of urgency from the heroes.
With Dionysus reduced to only seconds of screen time and only one line in the final film, it is possible for Beale to return as the character in a future MCU project. Thor: Love & Thunder's mid-credits scene reveals that Zeus is still alive following Thor's brutal attack on the god and has summoned his son Hercules (Brett Goldstein) to seek out and kill Thor. With Hercules teased as Thor's next major antagonist, it is likely that many of Zeus' other children will make an appearance beside him. Barring an announcement about a future Thor: Love & Thunder sequel, audiences will have to wait to see if Dionysus will finally get his day in the MCU.