Gugu Mbatha-Raw says Loki acts as an "origin story" for Ravonna Renslayer

Gugu Mbatha-Raw: "As we're dealing with time, obviously, things could go anywhere."

By Marah Eakin  |  June 22, 2021 | 4:00pm
TV Features Gugu Mbatha

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Two episodes into Loki, it’s perfectly understandable that viewers of the show would have a lot of questions. Questions like, “What’s going on with Lady Loki? When does Richard E. Grant show up? And what’s the deal with Mobius’ love of vintage beverages?”

Here’s another query to throw in the hopper: “Who is Ravonna Renslayer?” She might seem to be a badass judge ruling over a significant portion of the TVA and wielding her access to the Time Keepers with a velvet gloved iron fist, but how did she land that job? And is—in true Marvel fashion—anything else going on with her below the surface?

It’s a question we took to Renslayer’s portrayer, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, who revealed as much as she could in the video above. In it, she says:

It’s been a long journey for her. Renslayer started as a hunter, so she had a military background, essentially, like B-15. And in a way, she really worked her way up the ranks. Now she’s in this authoritative position. She reports directly to the Time Keepers, who are as high up as you can get in terms of the overlords of time. And she wants to maintain her position, so when Loki comes along as this disruptive variant, she’s not going to let him drag her and her reputation and her career trajectory down.

There’s also an interesting dynamic then with Möbius, Owen Wilson’s character, because, she and him have a longstanding working relationship and she has a soft spot for him. He’s able to charm her into pushing the boundaries a little bit.

In terms of Renslayer’s story as it relates to the comics, certainly when I spoke initially with Kate Herron, our director, [she said] this is very much an origin story for Renslayer in terms of her future in the comics. [But] as we’re dealing with time, obviously, things could go anywhere!

For our weekly Loki reviews, click here, and for a career-spanning interview with Mbatha-Raw highlighting all of her best and most beloved roles, click on over to this Random Roles piece.

Image credit: Marvel Studios

 
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