One of the weaker areas of the Marvel Cinematic Universe has been their villains, which often only appear in one film and never re-emerge. As a testament to the charming performance of Loki by Tom Hiddleston, the actor has appeared in all three Thor films and even served as a major villain in Marvel's The Avengers. During a recent interview for his new film Early Man, the actor shared just how lucky he was to be given the opportunity to create such a fascinating character.

"That's not a choice I've made, because what's sort of accidental about Loki, is that when I joined the Marvel Universe, there was no Marvel Universe," Hiddleston told Hey U Guys of making a massive commitment to the MCU. "There was, but it was much smaller than it is now. I've been so grateful to be a part of it. I think that Marvel had only made the first Iron Man when I was cast as Loki and they were in the middle of making Iron Man 2 and now, the Guardians and Captain America and Black Panther and Spider-Man's coming. I'm just lucky to be there."

The MCU keeps finding ways to make Loki relevant in various stories, a feat that even surprises Hiddleston.

"Every time I play Loki, the challenge is to find new ways of playing him," Hiddleston shared with TOI. "It is a source of constant surprise to me that I'm still here. I never expected that when I started playing him. I feel a huge responsibility to deliver the character people know, even though it's been four years since [Thor: The Dark World], and also to try to take him in new directions."

Much like the audience doesn't always know what to make of the character, the actor himself isn't always sure about what drives his character.

"I've spent six or seven years of my life trying to get to the bottom of what exactly it is that he wants," Hiddleston admitted. "When he seems to get close to what he wants — power, acceptance, belonging — he changes direction. I think that is the thing that keeps him interesting in a way. He's cunning and transformative and changeable, and will do everything he can to survive. He's the trickster. He's the God of mischief."

He added, "When I put on the costume, the make-up and wig for the first time for this film and looked in the mirror, I thought to myself, 'Wow, there he is.' It was like seeing an old friend. It was good to see him, in a way. I feel like I know him."

Audiences will next see Loki in Avengers: Infinity War, in which he will be aiding Thanos' quest to construct the Infinity Gauntlet for intergalactic domination.

Avengers: Infinity War hits theaters on May 4.

[H/T YouTube, Hey U Guys]