From one multiverse to another: MCU fan Ke Huy Quan says it’s incredible to join Loki 2

CALIFORNIA – More than two years after debuting in 2021, the acclaimed Marvel superhero series Loki will finally return on Friday for a second season on Disney+ – this time with a new addition, Oscar winner Ke Huy Quan.

Tom Hiddleston is back as the titular Norse god of mischief in this time-jumping action-adventure and crime thriller, which takes place after the events of the blockbuster film Avengers: Endgame (2019).

The show sees reformed Marvel villain Loki being enlisted by the Time Variance Authority (TVA), a timeline-policing agency, to help it restore order to the multiverse.

But as the multiverse grows increasingly unstable, he and TVA agent Mobius (Owen Wilson) turn to its basement-dwelling handyman and technology whiz Ouroboros (Quan), nicknamed OB, to help prevent a temporal meltdown.

When the actors spoke at a fan convention in Anaheim, California, in 2022 to discuss the new season, it was clear that Quan, 52, has endeared himself to his castmates.

“It’s an enormous pleasure for me to be able to welcome Ke Huy Quan to the cast,” says Hiddleston, 42, as he addresses fans from the stage.

Speaking to the press later, the English star adds: “It’s pretty amazing that we get to do a Season 2.”

“And we get this guy,” he says, putting his arm around Quan.

In March, the Asian-American star became the first Vietnam-born performer to take home an Oscar with his Best Supporting Actor win for the science-fiction film Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022).

Beaming, Quan says of this new project: “It’s so cool. I’m so excited.

“I’ve watched all the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) movies and have been a fan of the MCU for many years. To join it and be a member of the MCU – especially since I was a big fan of Loki Season 1 – is incredible.”

The show is the latest unexpected career turn for the former child star, who first became known for his supporting roles in the popular adventure films Indiana Jones And The Temple of Doom (1984) and The Goonies (1985).

But he took a two-decade hiatus from acting when the roles dried up, and worked quietly behind the scenes in Hollywood until he landed the plum role as the meek husband of Michelle Yeoh’s character in Everything Everywhere All At Once, also a multiverse-hopping, timeline-bending hit.

And the actor has had a blast working on Loki, he says.

“We’re in the thick of shooting now in London and we’re having such a fun time.”

Hiddleston says the new episodes will find his character in a rather precarious position.

Season 2 picks up where Season 1 left off. Loki is back at the TVA, he has had a difficult confrontation with Loki variant and love interest Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino), and Mobius and TVA soldier Hunter B-15 (Wunmi Mosaku) do not seem to know who he is.

But fans can expect to get some answers to this and other puzzles, says his American co-star Wilson, 54.

“You’re sort of, ‘How did I get here?’ Everybody asks that question at one time or another, and in Season 2, we’re going to answer it,” teases the actor, a frequent collaborator of American writer-director Wes Anderson and who is best known for comedy films such as Shanghai Noon (2000), Zoolander (2001) and Wedding Crashers (2005).

This season will also explore more sides to Loki, who started out as the antagonist in the Marvel film Thor (2011), before being rehabilitated into more of an antihero.

Hiddleston – who has played the character in six Marvel films, including The Avengers (2012) – says: “Loki is such a complex character, with such depth and range. And when I work with new actors, directors and writers, there’s always more to explore in the character, it seems.”

The positive reaction to the first season was very gratifying, he adds.

“In Season 1, we had the most extraordinary time and it was a very meaningful experience for all of us. The response from the audience and fans was also very powerful and meaningful for us,” Hiddleston says.

“But the story isn’t over. We have more to tell. And it’s a continued honour to get to keep playing Loki and find new chords to play in the symphony.”

• Loki 2 premieres on Disney+ on Friday.