Thor: Ragnarok director Taika Waititi disagrees with Martin Scorsese's Marvel comments: 'Of course it's cinema'

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Kelly Rissman

US News Reporter

Taika Waititi has combatted Martin Scorsese’s criticism of Marvel movies, after the director claimed they were “not cinema”.

Waititi – who directed Thor: Ragnarok – told Associated Press ahead of the release of his new film Jojo Rabbit: “Of course it’s cinema! It’s at the movies.”

To emphasise his point, he highlighted the word “cinema” in Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Scorsese sparked controversy after comparing Marvel films to theme park rides. In an interview with Empire Magazine published last month, Scorsese said that he had “tried” to watch movies from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but that they are “not cinema”.

“Honestly, the closest I can think of them, as well made as they are, with actors doing the best they can under the circumstances, is theme parks,” he said. “It isn’t the cinema of human beings trying to convey emotional, psychological experiences to another human being.”

While MCU stars including Samuel L Jackson and Guardians of the Galaxy James Gunn defended the blockbusters, Scorsese found an unlikely ally in Jennifer Aniston.

“You’re seeing what’s available out there and it’s just diminishing and diminishing in terms of, it’s big Marvel movies,” Aniston told Variety.

Waititi will next direct Thor: Love and Thunder, which will re-introduce Natalie Portman as a female version of the hammer-wielding superhero.

Find a ranking of every Avengers character here.

Scorsese’s next film, gangster epic The Irishman, will be available to stream on Netflix from 30 November.