THOR: RAGNAROK Brought Zoë Bell Out Of Stunt Retirement

Taika Waititi's Thor: Ragnarok is littered with New Zealanders. We know this, and it is good. But one prominent screen Kiwi involved doesn't recognisably appear in the film at all. Oh shit, here come dat Zoë Bell:

#ontheday #didntmakethecut #stillcoolthough #comingoutofretirement #stunts #thorragnarok #beingcate #beinghela #bodystillgotit #teameffort @jadeamantea @hayleyanneth @button.stunts @jonvalera @bobbydazzler84 @_oldmanriver_ @andyophoto @taikawaititi #voiceofgod @thebsa •. •. •. •. •. •. •. #marvel #hela #thor #odin #loki #stanlee #valkyrie #stuntwoman #theincrediblehulk #hulk #disney #superhero #girlpower #setlife #motioncapture #flip

A post shared by Zoë Bell (@therealzoebell) on Nov 15, 2017 at 3:30pm PST

Bell's involvement in the movie is actually pretty significant. She retired from the stunt double racket eight years ago - having doubled for Lucy Lawless in Xena: Warrior Princess and Uma Thurman in Kill Bill, among many other projects - to pursue a more straightforward acting career. Appearing in films like Death Proof, Camino, and The Hateful Eight, she often did her own stunts, but didn't double for other actors.

Predictably, Bell's return to pure stunt work - seen above doubling for Cate Blanchett's Hera in a shot that didn't make the movie - was largely thanks to the other Kiwis on the project. Speaking to TVNZ's Breakfast programme, Bell credited director Waititi and second unit director Ben Cook - "like a brother of mine from Xena" - for getting her on the project.

"It wasn't even a career choice for me," she said. "It was like a life choice."

Nawww. Now what the hell is that cut stunt all about, then?