Tom Hiddleston Helps Marvel Fans Understand Where Loki Series Fits Into MCU Timeline

Marvel fans have adored Tom Hiddleston's take on Thor's half-brother Loki for years and years now, but they may not be prepared for all the twists and turns they're about to experience as the trickster god makes his way into his own Disney+ series.

Launching this Wednesday, "Loki" features Hiddleston in the titular role, picking up the character's story from the latest "Avengers" film -- but it's not the latest iteration of the character.

While "WandaVision" challenged fans from the jump with its mysterious storyline, "Loki" is the first MCU project to challenge viewers even before it begins. To fully appreciate the series, fans need to understand which version of Loki we're following. The character has experienced quite a journey throughout his big-screen adventures, including (spoiler alert) his own death.

First, they need to understand that even though Loki began this particular adventure when he escaped capture during a scene in "Avengers: Endgame," the version of Loki that escaped was actually Loki as he was at the end of 2012's original "Avengers" film.

"This is the Loki who went through the story of that first Avengers film," Hiddleston told TV Insider. As such, "the audience broadly have a better perspective on Loki than Loki does."

"The audience has seen the events of [Thor films] 'The Dark World' and 'Ragnarok' and [Avengers films] 'Infinity War' and 'Endgame.' And this Loki is a Loki that doesn’t have any of that self awareness. He hasn’t been on this arc of redemption and catharsis."

He also laughed that this particular Loki is still freshly out of that fan-favorite moment when he was "smashed by the Hulk, rather like a ragdoll."

But, as detailed in the time-twisty "Avengers: Endgame," that version of Loki was able to take advantage of a distraction caused by the Avengers of 2023 who'd come back through time to change the course of their history. In the commotion, 2012 Loki manages to grab hold of the Tesseract and vanishes into time and space.

"Where he goes next is where we start," says Hiddleston.

And as seen in the first teasers for "Loki," the god of mischief doesn't stay free for long. He goes from capture by the Avengers to capture by the Time Variance Authority (TVA), as represented by Owen Wilson's Michael M. Mobius.

"Upon being apprehended by the TVA, he’s a very confused and destabilized being," Hiddleston shared. "He’s out of his comfort zone, a fish out of water, and not happy about it."

He then gets enlisted to try and help fix the problems he helped create by his escape. So is this a Loki ready to fight on the side of what's right? Well, so long as it suits his needs. But it's just a matter of time before he betrays his new work colleagues, isn't it?

A disgruntled Loki ready to wreak havoc is just how most of his fans like him. The latest look at the series promises lots of Marvel's signature humor delivered to perfection by an exasperated Hiddleston, as well as plenty of wild visuals, abstract concepts, excitement and action.

Check out the trailer for "Loki" below and then tune in Wednesday when the first episode drops on Disney+.