Loki Director Explains How Tom Hiddleston's MCU Series Originally Had an Alternative Ending

Summary

Director Aaron Moorhead reveals that Loki’s sacrifice was originally missing from the conclusion of season two, but the changes made were necessary for a sense of closure.
The final scenes of Loki hint at future developments in the MCU, including the involvement of the new TVA and possible returns of characters like Ravonna Renslayer and Mobius.
With the multiverse expected to close in Phase 6, it is likely that Loki will have to let go of the branching timelines and Tom Hiddleston may bow out of his role.

Marvel Studios’ Loki has been a shining jewel in a somewhat dusty Marvel crown in the last few years. The second season of Tom Hiddleston’s solo series ended earlier this month with a triumphant finale that gave the fan-favorite his “glorious purpose” as the guardian of the multiverse timelines. However, according to director Aaron Moorhead, there was originally something fundamentally missing from the conclusion of season two; Loki’s sacrifice.

Speaking on the latest episode of Marvel Studios Assembled: The Making of Loki Season 2, Moorhead explained that the series was originally meant to end with Loki managing to repair the Temporal Loom and subsequently “ascending the throne.” In Moorhead’s view, the changes made to give Loki the ending that was shown on screen were not only necessary, but also the right choice to bring a true sense of the closure to the show. He said:

“There was a draft of the script of the very end, the very end. Something wasn’t sitting right with both of us about it. And the issue was, this draft didn’t have Loki destroying the Loom. He saved the Loom from imploding and then ascended the throne. We all knew something was up, we just didn’t know what. ‘Cause it was like, well he’s trying to save the Loom, he gets the throne, all of this.

But the problem was, is that he didn’t have the sacrifice and we realized, why doesn’t he destroy the Loom and then have to take over the Loom’s massive responsibility? He doesn’t get anything out of it. It seems so obvious now, it seems like exactly the right choice. But that was a watershed moment in the development of it, when we realized Loki needs to destroy and become the Loom.”

Will Loki Return For Avengers: Secret Wars?

Loki Director Explains How Tom Hiddleston’s MCU Series Originally Had an Alternative Ending — Marvel Studios

The final scenes of Loki certainly suggest that there are threads to be woven into future projects of the MCU. This includes the work of the new TVA, which is rumored to play a part in next year’s Deadpool 3, Ravonna Renslayer in a new and strange place that some fans believe will be directly linked to the arrival of Kang the Conqueror’s Rama-Tut variant and possibly Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, and of course Sylvie and Mobius are still out there in the universe to make a return if and when required. And then there is Loki himself.

Tom Hiddleston’s character has been through some tough times in the last decade. On more than one occasion, it appeared that Loki had come to the end of the road, especially after his fateful meeting with Thanos in the opening moments of Avengers: Infinity War. But, like the proverbial bad penny, the trickster god just keeps on bouncing back. Now, sitting at the heart of the multiverse, there are few fans who believe they will not be seeing Loki again in Avengers: Secret Wars, if not before.

With the multiverse expected to be closed forever at the end of Phase 6, it seems obvious that Loki will have to relinquish his hold on the branching timelines for this to happen. At that point, it is also likely that Hiddleston will finally bow out of his role for good.

Seasons 1 and 2 of Loki are currently streaming on Disney+.