New THOR: THE DARK WORLD Details Hit; Producer Talks Redefining CBM Genre And More
Confirming another race of evildoers, besides the Dark Elves, Marvel Studios executive producer Craig Kyle has dished out new Thor: The Dark World details, while praising Alan Taylor's redefining direction.
Accompanying the first official behind-the-scenes photo from the Marvel sequel, Empire magazine also interviewed the studio's longtime executive producer, Craig Kyle, about the much-anticipated Thor follow-up, The Dark World. Explaining how the film will help to redefine the CBM genre, Kyle also confirms its place within the shared universe's time frame, a previously rumored otherworldly race, besides the Dark Elves, and much more. Check out his comments and additional info below.
“Like in Indiana Jones, while there's high stakes and high danger, there's always fun. We have to constantly redefine what a superhero film is or it'd just exhaust the audience. So Iron Man is the James Bond-y, classic, suave action hero; Captain America's the period piece; Hulk is the monster movie; Avengers the disaster movie; and Thor is the science-fiction epic.” After Marvel's The Avengers assembly especially, Kyle says that, “Expectations are high,” for Thor: The Dark World. “By bringing director Alan Taylor into the mix, with his expertise on The Sopranos, Mad Men and Game Of Thrones, we came up with a take that allows us to get more into the nooks and crannies of Asgard and its people. We spend more time on the ground with the commoners, as opposed to in the palace. It's a very complicated blend [of genres: high science fiction, gritty fantasy, and realism]. Thor is, until Guardians of the Galaxy hits, by far our most wild, fringe Marvel piece. But that's why it's the Marvel Universe and not Marvel Earth!”
Sometime during the interview, Craig Kyle informed Empire that Thor: The Dark World will pick-up one year after The Avengers events, and two years after the first Thor film. And at the sequel's start, we'll find Asgard battered by war and The Nine Realms beset “by rag-tag invaders known as The Maraunders,” who were pictured on the Bourne Wood set. And it's during this time that ancient Asgardian enemies the Dark Elves, led by Malekith and “wreathed in Gigeresque body armour,” return and wreak devastating revenge. Meanwhile, Thor, “now a full-time general,” will have some explaining to do when he finally reconnects with his Midgardian love interest, Jane Foster.
Marvel Studios’ “Thor: The Dark World” continues the big-screen adventures of Thor, the Mighty Avenger, as he battles to save Earth and all the Nine Realms from a shadowy enemy that predates the universe itself. In the aftermath of Marvel’s “Thor” and “Marvel’s The Avengers,” Thor fights to restore order across the cosmos…but an ancient race led by the vengeful Malekith returns to plunge the universe back into darkness. Faced with an enemy that even Odin and Asgard cannot withstand, Thor must embark on his most perilous and personal journey yet, one that will reunite him with Jane Foster and force him to sacrifice everything to save us all. Starring Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Stellan Skarsgård, Idris Elba, Christopher Eccleston, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Kat Dennings, Ray Stevenson, Zachary Levi, Tadanobu Asano and Jaimie Alexander with Rene Russo & Anthony Hopkins as Odin, “Thor: The Dark World” is directed by Alan Taylor, produced by Kevin Feige, from a story by Don Payne (credit not final) and screenplay by Christopher Yost and Christopher Markus & Stephen McFeely (credit not final) and is based on Marvel’s classic Super Hero Thor, who first appeared in the comic book “Journey into Mystery” #83 in August, 1962. “Thor: The Dark World” is presented by Marvel Studios. The executive producers are Louis D’Esposito, Alan Fine, Stan Lee, Victoria Alonso, Craig Kyle and Nigel Gostelow. The film releases November 8, 2013, and is distributed by Walt Disney Studios.