'Loki' Head Writer Michael Waldron Deftly Dodges Our Questions About A Second Season, 'Doctor Strange 2,' And Kevin Feige's 'Star Wars' Movie
When working with secretive properties the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Star Wars, filmmakers quickly learn how to dodge questions from sites like/Film that are looking for any scrap of new information about the future of these franchises.
So we'd like to commend Loki head writer Michael Waldron on his freshman outing with Marvel Studios for being able to successfully sidestep and dodge any questions about a potential second season of Loki, how the series might impact Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, and what he's bringing to Kevin Feige's developing Star Wars movie.
Loki introduces an agency known as the Time Variance Authority, a bureaucratic entity operating not unlike Law & Order: Time Crimes Unit (please let this be an actual spin-off). They're tasked with keeping what is known as "The Sacred Timeline" in order, working to make sure time doesn't branch off and create multiverses that could threaten existence as we know it. That sounds like quite a task, and surely now that Loki is helping the TVA track down a mysterious criminal stirring up trouble at various points in time, the agency will likely have a big role to play in the future, right? Like in a second season of Loki, right? Something Waldron can talk about, right?
The Part Where We Are Given No Hints About the TVA's Future
We asked Michael Waldron whether the TVA might have a looming presence in the next phase of the MCU in the same way that SHIELD did throughout the initial Infinity Saga. Waldron said:
"Maybe. We're gonna have to see where the TVA is at the end of all this. I was excited to build a new world within the MCU, and where they go moving forward, time will tell."
You see what he did there? He mentioned time being the key to getting this answer while talking about the Time Variance Authority. That Michael Waldron is quite the rapscallion, eh? He's just getting started.
The Part Where No Information on Doctor Strange 2 is Provided
Since Michael Waldron wrote Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and Loki directly references both multiverses and the potential madness of a multi-universe war, surely he could tell us whether the TVA will be involved in that upcoming Marvel sequel. Waldron responded:
[apprehensively sucks in air] "That's a question for somebody else."
Who else should we ask about this? Who else would we ask about this? Marvel honcho Kevin Feige? He's not going to tell us anything either! Bah!
The Part Where We Learn Nothing About Loki Season 2
All right, what about a second season of Loki? With a series that works like a crime procedural, there are probably ideas for how a second season of the show could carry on. So has Waldron been thinking about how to continue Loki's story? He was no help in answering that question:
"Is there a second season? That's news to me. I think our intention with this season was always to tell a great complete story. As for the future, we'll see."
ARGH! To hell with madness in the multiverse. There's madness right here! Tom Hiddleston told us there's an ending to the first season, so at least we know that much.
For anyone else, that might be strike three. But if there's one thing I learned as a kid...well, it's absolutely nothing, and I'm a glutton for punishment. So you can guess how things went when we asked about what Waldron is bringing to Kevin Feige's new Star Wars movie.
No, We Didn't Find Out Anything About Kevin Feige's Star Wars Either
Rather than looking for any story details or things we know are under tight wraps, we asked what he personally loves about Star Wars that he's bringing to this project. Waldron answered:
"Ummm. [laughs] Uhhh, well, I guess that's a good question. I love Star Wars. There's not much I can say about that project other than I love Star Wars and I'll try to bring everything I love about Star Wars into it. I love 3PO. I'll try and bring my love of 3PO into it."
C-3PO confirmed for Kevin Feige's Star Wars project! All right, that's not what Waldron is saying at all, but I'm willing to bet that before you read this article (if you made it this far), you didn't know that Michael Waldron loves C-3PO, and now you do. So we all learned something today after all.
In all seriousness, talking to Michael Waldron was a wonderful experience. As a fan of his Emmy-winning work on Rick and Morty, I was curious about what he learned from that show that helped him with Loki, especially when it came to cracking something as complicated as time travel and the Time Variance Authority. You can read all about that in our full interview with Michael Waldron coming later this week.
Loki premieres on Disney+ starting on June 9, 2021.