Theres a lot ofbastardsout there.
Thor: The Dark World, which opens today, could easily be subtitledLoki Strikes Back.
TOM HIDDLESTONWell, that is the eternal question.
There is this old phrase that the devil plays all the best tunes.
There is a kind of freedom to being bad, an embracing of ones most rebellious instincts.
The idea that essentially order and chaos exist inside every human being and mostly rightly we behave ourselves.
When you play a bad guy, you sort of cut loose from that sense of propriety.
Is it more interesting to play a noble character or a cruel one?
We find motivations and peoples emotional and psychological makeup to be fascinating, I know I do.
Villains are challenging because they provide such fascinating case studies.
Youre presented with a villain and the first question is What do they want?
Why are they villainous?
So in Lokis case, that answer is complex.
He has a broken heart.
Its a combination of factors I think.
Its that surface charm, that surface playfulness I think is appealing.
They may be monsters, but theyre not out of control.
The great thing is that they are in total control over the provocation of chaos.
Theres a delight in that.
I hope thats an access point and again I hope it just deepens his sense of humanity.
Mischief makes him sound tame.
And then actually further down the line, like entry No.
5 is destruction and damage.
So you have this one word mischief which encompasses all these things and thats the role Im playing.
Which is a more realistic reflection of ourselves the hero or the villain?
So the heroes are emblems of our strength.
They do the right thing, theyre noble, theyre generous, theyre selfless and they save the world.
And the bad guys are representation of our flaws, our failings, our vulnerabilities, our weakness.
Why do you think audiences are so taken with the power of bad guys right now?
He certainly changed it for me.
Ive never seen such an electrifying performance before or since.
There was something incredibly compelling about that film because of his performance in it.
YourThorco-star, Anthony Hopkins also won an Oscar for playing a monster who is simultaneously attractive and repellent.
Did you ever talk about this phenomenon with him?
I had a fascinating conversation with Anthony Hopkins about this.
Hes been doing this job for 50 years and has enjoyed every second of it.
Hes had a high old time.
He said hes played heroes and villains and kings and butlers and warriors.
Continued: Hiddleston on Lokis sinister sexuality…
The culture is facing hard times.
Money is tight in a stagnant economy, unemployment is high so is frustration.
Its attached to this idea living on the edge, not playing by the rules.
I think theres always been something thats sort of attractive about that.
We all want ourlivesto be happy, I know I do.
Some cathartic exploration of the darker aspects of our nature.
We want to watch it on screen and wedontwant it in our lives.
Loki is a sexy villain, but thats not part of his ambition, is it?
What do you think of Loki as a sexy beast?
[Laughs]Thats the first time anyone has ever used that phrase about Loki.
Its fascinating isnt it?
I dont know because its not a part of the conscious construction.
I take relish in playing him.
I think theres a physical self-possession about him, a self-acceptance.
Of course Ive been very exacting about his physicality.
Suddenly my blue eyes look a lot bluer, which lends a severity to my face.
And even my own smile has a distorted menace to it.
Whatever comes through me naturally is distorted.
Its almost like a filter on a light.
So you are not an agent of chaos like your alter ego?
Alter ego is the right way of putting it!
In so many ways, he is the photo negative of who I am.
What about as a boy were you a good kid or a troublemaker?
There were tricks and pranks and capery.
Vulnerability, I think.
Your floating fortress falls from the sky.
Youre heroes are scattered.
Where is my disadvantage?
and Coulsons response is, You lack conviction.
[Laughs] Which I love.
Loki is kind of a bottomless pit of need.
He doesnt seem like the kind of individual who could ever be happy.
and Lokis response is, Satisfaction is not in my nature.
They loved it, too.
I know youve gotten a lot of praise for that, but how did it feel playing him live?
In the words of Tony Stark inThe Avengers, Loki is a full-tilt diva.
So that aspect of him was just a fun, fun thing to do.
That was one of those moments that I thought it might be enjoyable and entertaining.
I didnt know it was going to be that.
I didnt know that was going to happen.
It must feel good to call on that when you need it.
Yeah, [laughs] just wheel him out whenever.
