The first feature film for Marvel’s resident norse god Thor has been in the news a lot lately, as it has been picking up speed on it’s way to beginning production. There was the news that Natalie Portman has been cast as a female lead in the film, as a currently un-named character (most believe Portman will pla Enchantress, an Asgardian goddess who served as Thor’s ally, advisor and sometime lover). If Enchantress does appear in the film, with or without Portman, there’s a pretty good chance that there will be a twist that involves the script’s villain (and Thor’s brother) Loki. But I won’t give that away. There has been rumors that Branagh has a front runner for the role of the main villain of the film, Thor’s brother Loki. Josh Hartnett is rumored to be the favorite for the part. There has even been word that they have been trying out actors for the lead role, with the frontrunner now being Charlie Hunnam. Now, I find that interesting because (as all you long-time and dedicated MovieGuys fans will know) I pegged Hunnam as the man to play Thor months ago. You can read all about that here. The latest bit of news is that Marvel studios exec’s are excited about Branagh’s passion for Marvel universe, as they believe this will mean Thor will feature nods to (if not appearances by) other Marvel film characters, including Hulk, Iron Man, and Captain America. This will ultimately lead to a slot for Thor in Marvel’s previously announced epic hero team up flick The Avengers. All of this news is surely enough to make fanboys and comic book enthusiasts alike drool all over themselves.
Marvel editor-in-chief Joe Quesada recently spoke with MTV News about Thor director Kenneth Branagh, in an interview where all this speculation began: “Branagh understood that there was this very, very big tapestry of the Marvel movies. There’s continuity within the movies and he really wanted to play within that and wanted it to be part of the other movies. He was really, really loving the interconnectivity between all of these characters and even thinking ahead as to how does Thor interrelate with the Iron Man movies. How will he interrelate with the The Avengers movies, and how do we set these things up.”
Excuse me while I take a second to wipe the drool off my chin… I am now thoroughly convinced that not only will Thor be a bad ass movie (maybe not a box-office smash though), but that Marvel is now light years ahead of DC in terms of development of their properties into an integrated film universe. This is what comic book fans have dreamed of for years. Image the possibilities: Iron Man fighting a rampaging Hulk with the hulk-buster armor in IM4, Wolverine (when FOX finally loses rights to the character) appearing in The Avengers 2, Moon Knight and Tigra’s romance on the big screen, Hawkeye and Captain America… I personally can’t wait until Marvel regains the rights to ALL of their properties, and believe me, it WILL happen. It has to happen. Oh, will that day be sweet…