Kat Dennings Talks Comic Relief In Thor
In this interview with the Wall Street Journal, the actress talks about comic relief in the movie, being a fan of Marvel, and her character development
You said that you got the role before you even knew what it was. Is that typical at all?
It’s not typical but it sort of is for a movie like this that’s very top-secret and anticipated, because they don’t want anything to leak or get out. So I didn’t really know what I was walking into because there was no Darcy in the comics. So after I got it, I was like, “oh! That’s what it is. Okay.”
How did they describe the character to you? Did they say “you might have to wear a catsuit,” or anything like that?
No, they said you’re the assistant to a scientist, basically. They gave me a rough outline, and then like a two-page scene, maybe, that’s not in the movie, that’s just a scene written for the audition.
Your character provides a very necessary element of comic relief. What sort of pressure does that put on you when you’re preparing her?
Having seen the film and looking back, I probably should have felt more pressure, because I didn’t realize that it was such an important component. But at the time, it just felt easy and natural because they filmed the Asgard scenes before Santa Fe, before the Earth scenes, so Nat [Portman] and Stellan [Skarsgard] and I were basically our own little movie with Chris, so we weren’t really aware of the other world. So it just felt very easy and natural. But yeah, when I saw it all put together, I was like, oh wow – holy s—! Maybe I should have been more nervous.
Once you got the script, was she pretty well-defined, or was there a lot of room for you to develop her background?
There just wasn’t that much of her, which I anticipated. I mean, when I auditioned, I went, oh, she’s an assistant, maybe she’ll be in one or two scenes – and that’s enough. I was totally excited about that; just being in Thor and working with Kenneth Branagh and everyone, I didn’t care how many scenes I was in. And then we had the table read, and for some reason Darcy was really well-received, and I think because everyone responded so well, they were like, there’s got to be more Darcy, and all of a sudden I’m in a lot of scenes. I’m like, “are you sure Darcy’s in this scene? Wow!” So I think Darcy just got bigger and bigger, and then she was very well fleshed-out, and the improvising we did in rehearsal is what ended up in the film. But it was definitely based on reality once we got to the shooting script.
How calculated do you have to be about your choices? Was the appeal of this in doing something you hadn’t done before, or id there value in doing a film like this because of the visibility it gives you?
I didn’t really have a bigger plan, but I always wanted to be in a Marvel movie. It was kind of something I hoped I would get to do one day, because I’m a big Marvel fan, a big comic book fan. And a big mythology fan, so Thor is just “it.” Thor is the end. You don’t get bigger than Thor. He’s a god. So Thor and Kenneth Branagh – say no more. I would have been a camera guy, I would have done anything on that movie just to be around that kind of talent.
You mentioned you’re a big Marvel fan. Are you just a fan of the movies, or do you collect the comics too?
I’m a fan of the films and also the comic books, but I don’t collect them. My brother did growing up, so I was always peeking over his shoulder and looking through them.
Were there particular titles you would steal from him?
I liked anything that had a girl on the cover, because I was pretty little at that time. But I vividly remember Sif, which is weird. I remember her stuff from the comic books.
Thor opens on Friday, May 6.
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