Taika Waititi in talks to helm “Thor: Ragnarok” for Marvel

PanARMENIAN.Net - “Flight of the Conchords” director Taika Waititi is in negotiations to direct “Thor: Ragnarok” for Marvel, TheWrap reports citing an individual with knowledge of the situation.

Waititi beat out Ruben Fleischer for the coveted job of steering the comic book movie sequel. He follows in the footsteps of Kenneth Branagh (“Thor”) and Alan Taylor (“Thor: The Dark World”).

A representative for Marvel did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Marvel’s Kevin Feige will produce “Thor: Ragnarok,” which sees Chris Hemsworth return as the titular superhero. He’ll be joined by Tom Hiddleston as Loki and Jaimie Alexander as Lady Sif.

Disney will release “Thor: Ragnarok” on July 28, 2017.

Waititi represents a diverse hire for Marvel, as the New Zealand native is half-Maori. He previously directed “What We Do in the Shadows” and the indie comedy “Eagle vs. Shark,” and he also wrote the script for Disney’s animated movie “Moana.”