This Die Hard Character Influenced Tom Hiddleston's Loki Performance

When discussing the most popular comic book villains and anti-heroes ever brought to the silver screen, Loki (Tom Hiddleston) certainly ranks high on the list. Introduced in 2011's "Thor," the Marvel Cinematic Universe's resident God of Mischief has embarked on all kinds of adventures. Through his battle with the Avengers, multiple clashes with his Asgardian family, and his tenure with the Time Variance Authority, he has gone from a troubled god to the protector of the Multiverse. There's a good chance Loki's extensive MCU timeline was always destined to unfold this way, but Hiddleston's performances could've looked much different had it not been for the 1988 classic "Die Hard."

Speaking at PaleyFest 2024, Hiddleston revealed that his Loki performances were inspired in part by the Bruce Willis-led action flick. More specifically, the work of the late Alan Rickman as one of the best "Die Hard" movie villains, Hans Gruber, informed his approach to the classic Marvel character. "I just was so drawn to those performances as they seemed to be having such a wonderful time playing these antagonists, I suppose. And that was part of the charm. They were so charismatic, even though they weren't at the center of those films," Hiddleston explained (via People), mentioning Phillip Vandamm (James Mason) from the 1959 thriller "North by Northwest" as another influence.

While characters like Gruber went a long way in inspiring Hiddleston's "Loki" performance, the actor also looked to other sources of guidance to perfect his work.

When comparing Loki and Hans Gruber, it's easy to see where Tom Hiddleston was inspired by Alan Rickman's performance. Both actors play their characters as tricksters whose emotions can be hard to pin down, making them intimidating to those unfamiliar with them. They're also quick thinkers and determined to meet their respective goals. Despite these similarities, though, Hiddleston didn't just watch "Die Hard" before portraying the God of Mischief in the movies. He also did plenty of research on other versions of Loki, ones rooted in mythology and pop culture.

"I was cast in April 2009, and I had about eight months to build the character from the ground up," Hiddleston explained during an appearance on Vanity Fair's "Little Gold Men" podcast. To do so, he immediately got to work researching all kinds of Lokis, from those on the pages of Marvel Comics to the one of Scandinavian legend. He even dove a bit into Loki's presence in Jim Carey's 1994 movie, "The Mask." Pulling back the curtain on the process, he added, "What's Loki's impact on human imagination and culture? And then synthesizing all of that into the story we're telling. That was such a delightful period of discovery and curiosity."

Tom Hiddleston has teased his Loki future, expressing uncertainty over what lies ahead for him in the MCU. No matter what happens, though, it's fair to say that Hiddleston was the prime choice for Loki and that he put his research and inspiration to good use.