Tessa Thompson plays Valkyrie in "Thor: Ragnarok" which means she not only has to battle the forces of evil in the upcoming film but also face the reactions of fans on the issue of her character's supposed race.
When Thompson was cast as the warrior Valkyrie, the actress received backlash due to her being of a different race than the comic book version of her character.
The characters of "Thor" are largely based on figures from Nordic mythology, which means they were depicted in the comic books as what is "typical" of someone found in the Nordic culture.
Thompson, meanwhile, is of Panamanian, Mexican and European heritage.
"It's a tricky thing," she told Collider about her thoughts on the fans' reactions. "I think as an actor there's this idea sometimes that you just don't want to read anything, but then when you're entering this cinematic universe that people are so diehard about, you actually can learn a lot from the fans when you're doing research."
Valkyrie as a character has been rehashed. In the comics, she was the leader of Odin's task force. In the movie, she is an ex-pat spending her time on the planet Sakaar and eventually joins forces with Thor.
Thompson isn't the first black actor to portray a white character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Idris Elba, who plays Heimdall in the "Thor" movies, also faced a similar controversy when the first movie came out in 2010.
Heimdall has since become a fan-favorite character.
"We just do what we do and we hope that people respond to it and we ignore the ones that don't," Thompson added. "It's important for Marvel to answer the call for inclusion and diversity and also to be able to have some freedom with these stories."
"Thor: Ragnarok" comes out in theaters on Friday, Nov. 3.
