A renowned filmmaker, actor, and comedian, Taika Waititi has established himself as one of the most popular filmmakers in the movie industry for his immensely successful projects such as Jojo Rabbit, Free Guy, Our Flag Means Death, and many more. But his most important work would be in Marvel Cinematic Universe in Thor: Ragnarok and Thor: Love and Thunder.
Taika Waititi has proved that he can entertain the audience and make them laugh regardless of the genre. His understanding of the balance between humor and tragedy in his films has helped him to stand out from other filmmakers. Though not featuring some insane number of films, he has made each of his works iconic by featuring memorable characters, and one such character is from the Thor franchise that the fans love to see.
Taika Waititi Shares Inspiration for Korg in Thor Franchise
After Thor: The Dark World failed to impress the fans, Marvel decided to shake things up, and they did it by hiring Taika Waititi for Thor: Ragnarok. The film was different from the usual MCU films as the director decided to inject humor into his film. The third sequel was colorful, funny, and dark at the same time, featuring some new and old faces that the fans loved immensely.
One such beloved character was Korg, played by none other than the Next Goal Wins director. The character was memorable because of his endearing personality, broken humor, New Zealand accent, and mellow temperament. During an exclusive interview with GQ, Taika Waititi shared how visiting a nightclub in New Zealand helped him to find inspiration for Korg.
“There’s different types of the New Zealand accent, you know, and I base that on the Polynesian accent of like, mainly I was thinking about bouncers outside nightclubs. You know, growing up in New Zealand and always like just massive, giant guys, but they’re the most beautiful, humble nice people you’ll ever meet, you know? And like, why do they need to be aggressive? They just don’t need to, it’s like a wall of a person stopping you getting in. So why not be nice if you’re that big, you know?”
Waititi added that he had grown up with these bouncers in New Zealand and it made him feel comfortable, moreover, he was always fascinated with the idea of showcasing a Polynesian character in an American film.
“So, you know, I’ve grown up around a lot of those guys and it’s just like a, it’s just a voice and a style and it’s just a sensibility that I’ve always found really like comforting to be around. Just being Polynesian as well. I just like the idea of having a character like that in an American studio film.”
While the director was fascinated with the idea of a character like Korg in the Thor franchise, he was worried about how he would have to revoice the character because of the thick accent.
Fans Loved Korg’s New Zealand Accent
In the same interview with GQ, Waititi shared that he was worried that the audience would face difficulty in understanding the accent and that he would have to voice the character again. To his surprise, the viewers not only enjoyed watching the character but also showered him with love and praise.
“I wasn’t even sure if people would even understand my accent. I thought, well, they’ll probably make me revoice this or get someone else to do it because, you know, the voice so over the top, who the hell is gonna understand this? But it’s been amazing, the fact that people can understand and also then grew to love that character.”
Taika Waititi’s idea was so successful that Thor: Ragnarok earned $850.4 million at the worldwide box office. As a result, he returned to direct Thor: Love and Thunder, which was not so successful at the box office, but it was entertaining to watch the film for a good laugh.
Thor: Ragnarok can be streamed on Disney+.
Source: GQ
