Thor 2: Kenneth Branagh not directing, release set for July 26, 2013
Chris Hemsworth鈥檚 mighty Asgardian warrior will be back on the big screen in Thor 2, which is slated for theatrical release in 2013 鈥� just a matter of under three months after his teammate, Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), suits up again in .
Similar to how Iron Man 1 & 2 helmer Jon Favreau won鈥檛 be returning as director for the third film in that series, Thor鈥荣 Kenneth Branagh won鈥檛 be calling the shots on the sequel to his comic book flick. He is, however, expected to return in some capacity, probably as a producer.
Another solo adventure with was always in the books for Marvel 鈥� even before the first film was released in theaters to generally and a (current) worldwide gross of just over $437 million. Now the studio鈥檚 superior, Walt Disney Pictures, has officially settled on a July 26, 2013 release date for the followup.
Why exactly Branagh has selected to not return as director is anyone鈥檚 guess at this point. There are already rumors circulating about a breakdown in negotiations over his contract 鈥� and, of course, the possibility that creative control became an issue (as has long been speculated about Favreau stepping aside from the third picture).
Whatever 鈥渂ad blood鈥� there may or may not be between studio and filmmaker, it鈥檚 seemingly not enough to ward off Branagh from serving as producer on Thor 2. That alone seems to imply that perhaps the Shakespeare aficionado just wasn鈥檛 ready to jump right back and once again take on the difficult task of helming another big-budget, effects-heavy blockbuster 鈥� one that鈥檒l come with extra demands from devoted Thor comic book fans who have their own preconceived notions (or, rather, hopes) about where the sequel could and/or should go, in terms of storyline, villains, etc.
While most people agree that Thor was an overall good superhero tale, there was certainly room for improvement; seeing as that Thor 2 won鈥檛 be affected by the to the same degree as its predecessor, the sequel can instead put more effort towards character development and exploration of the vast Thor mythology. Obviously, that encompasses a good deal of story material to be potentially explored in the film, not least of which pertains to the items glimpsed in in Thor 鈥� which would also pave the way for additional Marvel characters to be introduced in the future.
One thing that ought to be mentioned: With and already scheduled for 2012 鈥� and both Iron Man 3 and Thor 2 hitting theaters in 2013 鈥� that presumably means that won鈥檛 arrive until Summer 2014. Sorry, fans of the patriotic First Avenger, but assuming you like the first Cap movie (which arrives in less than a month), you might have to wait a bit longer for his next adventure.
In the meantime, though, feel free to speculate in the comments section about who you鈥檇 like to see direct the Thor sequel, now that Branagh appears to be out of contention.
hit theaters on July 22nd, 2011.
The Avengers arrives next year on May 4th, 2012.
Iron Man 3 will hit theaters on May 3rd, 2013, followed by Thor 2 on July 26th.
Source: Walt Disney Pictures/Marvel
Sandy Schaefer blogs at .
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