In less than one week, moviegoers will be heading to the movie theater to see Thor: Ragnarok, and catch up with Thor, Loki, Hulk, and a bunch of new faces. One face viewers won't be seeing though is Lady Sif, who is sitting this one out after appearing in both of the previous Thor movies. It's been a small subject of mystery as to why this is, but both Marvel and actress Jaimie Alexander have remained tight-lipped about it...until now. Turns out there's no deep reason for Sif's absence other than scheduling conflicts, according to Alexander.
I was asked, but the timing of when they were going to shoot and when Blindspot was gonna shoot --- it was pretty much the same time. So there was a conflict there. I was hoping for more of a notice from [the studio] so I could make it work, but it was a short notice thing. They called and said, 'Hey, by the way, would you come do this?' I said there is no way I can make that work that fast.
In addition to appearing as the Asgardian warrior Lady Sif, Jaimie Alexander also stars in a television thriller on NBC called Blindspot. TV schedules are notoriously grueling, and it sounds like Blindspot conflicted with a role in Thor: Ragnarok. Alexander told Yahoo! that Marvel did reach out to her about appearing in the movie, but filming for the superhero sequel directly conflicted with her TV show. So, Alexander just wasn't able to do it. Something tells me that Lady Sif didn't have a very big part anyway, so perhaps Alexander didn't miss out on much.
Further complicating things was the fact that Thor: Ragnarok was filming on an entirely different continent than Blindspot. Ragnarok filmed in Australia, meaning that even if Alexander was able to squeeze in time for the blockbuster, she'd never be able to make it halfway across the world in time -- at least not on the short notice Marvel gave her.
It couldn't happen. They were on a different continent! So it was sad. I was bummed about it.
While Jaimie Alexander had to sit this one out, there's always the consolidation that Lady Sif probably isn't dead, which means that there's always Thor 4 (which Alexander said she'd be more than happy to do)! While some may be disappointed with the lack of Sif, it isn't like there is already a riches of talent in the movie. The movie is getting near universal praise, with several critics highlighting the performances of Jeff Goldblum, Tessa Thompson, and Chris Hemsworth.
Thor: Ragnarok is landing in theaters in less than one week on November 3, so make sure to pre-order your tickets if you have not already done so! Until then, keep up to date with our comprehensive guide.
