Christian Bale will be the villain in Thor: Love and Thunder.

Bale's co-star, Tessa Thompson confirmed as much to Entertainment Tonight on the red carpet recently.

While it's not news that Christian Bale would be joining the MCU in the Thor: Ragnorak sequel, this is the first confirmation that he will be playing the foe to Chris Hemsworth's hero. Which MCU villain Bale will be playing is still a mystery though.

Christian Bale is no stranger to superhero movies of course, having donned the Batsuit in Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy to much acclaim.

He's also played his fair share of morally dubious characters over the years in the likes of American Psycho and Harsh Times. So playing an MCU villain shouldn't be too much of a stretch.

Bale joins a cast that includes Chris Hemsworth as the titular character and Tessa Thompson as fan favourite Valkyrie. Natalie Portman meanwhile, is returning as Jane Foster having skipped Thor: Ragnarok following appearances in the first two Thor movies.

It was a bit of a surprise when it was first announced that Bale would be joining the cast. As it was when it was revealed Portman would be returning as she had previously been critical of the MCU over their handling of Patty Jenkins' departure from Thor: The Dark World.

We can only assume the chance to work with Taika Waititi was a major draw. The Kiwi is returning to write and direct the movie. Where the Oscar winner gets the time considering he's also adapting two Roald Dahl series for Netflix is a mystery.

No wonder he needs so many naps.