'Loki' Director Kate Herron Exits & Won't Return For Season 2

Marvel‘s “Loki” series had its finale air on Disney+ this week and had a pretty big reveal that will likely echo throughout Phase 4 and possibly beyond that. At the end of the episode, the other big announcement was Marvel Studios confirming that they would indeed be moving forward with a second season, something that had been telegraphed even before cameras had started rolling in Atlanta. 

READ MORE: Director Kate Herron Talks ‘Loki’ & All The Films She “Stole From” To Create Her Love Letter To Sci-FI [The Playlist Podcast]

Sadly, it has been announced at Deadline that series director and executive producer Kate Herron will not return for Season two. Herron was a creative force on the series and gave fans something rather special with a majority of practical effects.  

“I’m not returning,” Herron told Deadline. “I always planned to be just on for this, and, to be honest, season two wasn’t in the — that’s something that just came out, and I’m so excited. I’m really happy to watch it as a fan next season, but I just think I’m proud of what we did here, and I’ve given it my all. I’m working on some other stuff yet to be announced.”

READ MORE: ‘Loki’ Head Writer Says ‘Catch Me If You Can,’ ‘Before Sunrise,’ ‘Blade Runner’ & Mad Men’ Influenced His Marvel Series

There were recent reports that the show’s head writer Michael Waldron (“Rick & Morty,” “Doctor Strange In The Multiverse of Madness“) would be involved in some capacity with Season 2 alongside Kevin Feige‘s secret “Star Wars” film at Lucasfilm.

READ MORE: Marvel’s Kevin Feige Says The ‘Loki’ Series Will Have “More Impact On The MCU Than Any Of The Shows Thus Far”

Those who listened to any podcast conversations with Herron, like ours (see above), might not be totally surprised. The filmmaker said she has spent two years on “Loki” and because of the pandemic and the location of the shoot, she had not seen her parents in two years. It was clear from those conversations that Herron would need a break and additionally, she spoke about several of her own projects that were brewing that would be next.

Hopefully, she’ll eventually circle back to the Marvel Cinematic Universe one day. She did talk about her love for the X-Men” animated series with YouTuber Trey Mangum at one point, so maybe that could be a thing eventually. However, she isn’t planning on coming back to Marvel Studios anytime soon and again, has her own projects she’s hoping to turn into a reality.

“No, I’m just focused on my own stuff at the moment. I love Marvel, and I’d love to work with them again, but my outing with Loki is what I’ve done with them,” Herron responded when she was asked if she would be working on upcoming MCU projects. 

Stay patient to hear who Marvel will select as the next director of “Loki” Season two.