Thor: The Dark World
Delve into the darkness.
Thor: The Dark World (2013)
Production
Budget
$170 000 000
Revenue
$644 783 140
Director
Scenario
Robert Rodat
Author
Composer
Producer
Actors
Chris Hemsworth
Thor
Natalie Portman
Jane Foster
Tom Hiddleston
Loki
Christopher Eccleston
Malekith
Anthony Hopkins
Odin
Zachary Levi
Fandral
Ray Stevenson
Volstagg
Short description
Thor: The Dark World continues the story of the Marvel Studios series about the Norse god Thor. An ancient race of dark elves, led by the vengeful Malekith, emerges to plunge the Nine Realms into darkness, posing a threat that even Odin and Asgard cannot withstand. Thor must find a way to defeat this enemy, a struggle that brings him back together with the mortal scientist Jane Foster.
The film was directed by Alan Taylor and written by Christopher Markus, Stephen McFeely and Christopher L. Yost, with Kevin Feige and Kenneth Branagh among the producers. Chris Hemsworth plays Thor, Natalie Portman is Jane Foster, Tom Hiddleston returns as Loki, Christopher Eccleston is Malekith, and Anthony Hopkins plays Odin, alongside Jaimie Alexander as Sif. It was released on October 30, 2013, and runs 112 minutes. It is the first film Taylor directed in the chronological list of his directing work, ahead of Terminator Genisys, The Many Saints of Newark and two House of the Dragon trailers.
Made for a budget of 170 million US dollars, the film took in about 645 million dollars worldwide. On IMDb it holds a rating of 6.7 out of 10 from roughly 774,000 votes, while on TMDB it has a 6.5 out of 10 from more than 18,000 votes. A critics' rating of 6.3 out of 10 from 289 reviews places it slightly below both audience scores.
What's left behind the scenes
- Joshua Dallas was supposed to return to the film as Fandral, but his commitment to filming the series “Once Upon a Time” prevented the actor from doing so. Dallas was replaced in the film by Zachary Levi, who was originally intended for the role of Fandral.
- The streets of Asgard are the largest set ever built for a Marvel film. The city is reproduced with such accuracy that you can walk its streets, look into shops, pubs, and training grounds.
- The film crew spent many hours shooting aerial footage of Dettifoss waterfall in Iceland, the most powerful waterfall in Europe, in order to later add natural realism to the waterfalls surrounding Asgard using computer graphics.
- Filming in Iceland took place in such remote locations that the crew often had to spend hours getting from the airport to the hotel, and then several more hours from the hotel to the volcanic fields, which served as the filming location for scenes in the Realm of Darkness.
- If you look closely at the details of the interior of Jane Foster's London apartment, you can notice that the sheet music on the piano is titled “Thor – God of Thunder.”
- Childhood photographs of Jane Foster were kindly provided for the filming by Natalie Portman’s mother.
- Approximately 30 hammers of varying weights were made for filming to be used in different scenes. The main hammer is made of aluminum and was reproduced in several versions of different weights and materials, including a “soft” version for performing stunts in the film.
- The design of Mjolnir, Thor's hammer, has changed since its appearance in the Marvel film "The Avengers" (2012). The new Mjolnir looks more ancient, has more detail on the handle, and resembles the one used in the original "Thor" film (2011).
- The runic inscription on Thor's hammer reads: "Whosoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of Thor."
- Prop master Barry Gibbs and his team of 18 technicians constructed 140 weapons in 10 weeks. A total of over 600 weapons were constructed for the film.
- More than 40 Dark Elf costumes were created for the film in 3.5 months of work.
- The elves are depicted as a noble people in the film, so special masks were constructed with lowered eye slits – to see through them, actors have to keep their backs straight and tilt their heads slightly back, which gives them a strong and proud appearance.
- Actors Christopher Eccleston and Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, who played the Dark Elves, had to learn dialogue in Elvish, a language created specifically for the film.
- The main parts of the film were shot in October – December 2012 at the Shepperton Studios in England, as well as at key locations in London – Greenwich, Wembley, St. Paul’s Cathedral, Borough Market, in the forests of Surrey, and at Stonehenge in Wiltshire. The scenes in the Dark Elf world were filmed in Iceland, a location chosen for its dark volcanic landscapes.
- Before starting filming with a helicopter over the historic part of Greenwich, the filmmakers sent 4,000 letters, 2,000 to each side of the river, to warn local residents about possible disruption and explain what would happen during filming.
- After the film crew finally received permission to shoot in the Stonehenge area, the filmmakers faced a number of rules and restrictions. For example, it turned out that filming was only allowed during non-working hours, so the shooting took place early in the morning and for only a few hours each day. Because Stonehenge is state-protected, it is forbidden to walk on or touch the stones, which significantly complicated the logistics of filming.
- Director Alan Taylor was so impressed with Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje's performance that he persuaded him to do all the stunts himself, because the stuntman couldn't move the same way he did.
- The stone creature that Thor fights is Kronan, an alien who appears in the first Thor comic, “Journey Into Mystery” #83.
- The Nine Realms are borrowed from Norse mythology. The realms are held on the branches of the immense ash tree Yggdrasil, which plays a central role in Scandinavian mythology. Asgard is depicted at the top, and Earth, also known as Midgard, is in the middle. Here are the nine realms: Asgard – the realm of the gods; Vanaheim – the realm of the Vanir, a race similar to the inhabitants of Asgard; Alfheim – the realm of the light elves; Niflheim – the realm of the ice giants; Midgard – the realm of humans; Jotunheim – the realm of the ice giants; Svartalfheim – the realm of the dark elves; Helheim – the realm of the dead; Muspelheim – the realm of fire demons and the giant Surtur.
- The director of the first post-credits scene is James Gunn.
- Stan Lee appears in a cameo as a man giving a boot to Dr. Selvig.
- At the beginning of the film, when London is shown, a nearly completed skyscraper is visible. During the final battle, the same locations are shown several months earlier, and it is clear that the same skyscraper is at a much earlier stage of construction. In the final scenes, the building appears again, and once more at a different stage of construction.
- When Jane is eating cereal with Darcy, Selvig, and the intern, she puts a spoon in her mouth during the conversation, but after a change of angle, the spoon is back in the bowl.
- The Volvo that Darcy is driving has a registration sticker on the driver's side window that does not match the number on the license plate.
- When Thor asks a passenger in the London Underground at Charing Cross station if it’s the right train to Greenwich, he is told it is. However, there are no direct trains from Charing Cross to Greenwich on the London Underground, and Thor would have to make at least one transfer.
- When Ether possesses Jane, her clothes abruptly change to an Asgardian dress (even though she hasn't been there yet). When she wakes up, she is wearing her normal clothes again.
- During the scene where Frigg dies, Thor's hammer is in his right hand in some shots and in his left hand in others.
- Mads Mikkelsen was considered for the role of Malekith but left the project due to a scheduling conflict with the series "Hannibal" (2013) (Anthony Hopkins, who played Odin, had previously played Hannibal). Ultimately, the role went to Christopher Eccleston.
- At the end of 2011, Patty Jenkins was officially announced as the director of the film. In December 2011, she withdrew from the project due to "creative differences." Natalie Portman was so upset that negotiations between Jenkins and Marvel fell through that she even considered dropping out of the sequel, but was forced to return due to her contract.
- Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje described his character as a "mixture of a bull and lava." During filming, he had three hours of makeup applied to him daily, along with 18 kg of prosthetic makeup.
- At the end of September, Jaimie Alexander suffered an injury while filming in London: "It was around 5 a.m., it was raining, it was dark outside—I was coming down a metal staircase and slipped, resulting in a displaced disc in my thoracic spine and damage to 11 vertebrae. I also dislocated my left shoulder... In the end, I couldn't film for a month!"
- The film was shot in England under the working title "Thursday's Mourning." In Scandinavian mythology, "Thursday" was named after Thor (originally "Thursday"—Thor's Day).
- Carter Burwell was supposed to compose the music for the film, but left the project due to creative differences and was replaced by Brian Tyler, the composer of "Iron Man 3" (2013).
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
