Thor Love and Thunder teaser has fans shipping Chris Pratt and Chris Hemsworth's characters

The teaser for Marvel's upcoming superhero adventure Thor: Love and Thunder released on Monday evening.

The one-minute 27-second teaser gives a brief look at Thor (Chris Hemsworth) on the road to self-discovery after the events of Avengers: Endgame. And while there is no dearth of jaw-dropping moments and reveals in the teaser, a hilarious scene featuring Thor and Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) has caught the fans' fancy. Many fans seem to have caught on a same-sex romance subtext between the two. 

Chris Pratt is reprising his role as Peter Quill from the Guardians of the Galaxy series, along with other co-stars Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, Karen Gillan, and Pom Klementieff. It is expected that the Guardians' appearance in Thor 4 is an extended cameo. An exchange between Quill and Thor in the film has the former telling the God of Thunder to "look into the eyes of people that love you". As Quill looks towards his fellow Guardians, Thor tries to gaze into Quill's eyes instead. At that, Quill replies, "Not me!" A flustered and embarrassed Thor says, "What? Just listening."

Viewers pointed out that it appears Thor has a crush on Peter Quill here, or at least there is some romantic/sexual tension between the two characters. One fan tweeted screenshots of the exchange between the two and wrote, "Does Thor have a crush on Peter Quill?" Another fan shared the original tweet and wrote, "Omg Thor love and thunder it makes so much sense. Thor is gonna fall in love with Quill."

Given Chris Pratt's seemingly conservative and orthodox views on LGBTQ relationships, fans are convinced director Taika Waititi wrote the scene deliberately to mess with the actor. One fan tweeted, "If Taika Waititi created gay subtext for Thor Love and Thunder with Thor and Quill knowing the Way Chris Pratt is...he's so insane and powerful." There were several memes referencing how shocked and angry Chris Pratt may have been on reading the scene in the script. Chris identifies as a non-denominational Christian and is part of the Hillsong church, which has been criticised for its anti-LGBTQ stance. The actor himself, however, has never openly shared his views on same-sex relationships.

Many have pointed out that the Thor in Marvel Comics and MCU is based on the Norse god, and in the Norse mythology, Thor is pansexual. Hence, it wouldn't be out of character for him to fall in love with a man. However, whether the scene is just a throwaway reference or if there is something more to it remains to be seen.

Thor: Love and Thunder also stars Natalie Portman, Tessa Thompson, and introduces Christian Bale to the MCU as new villain Gorr the God Butcher. The film will hit the screens on July 8, 2022.