Entertainment
Kenneth Branagh Has A Plan To Save Thor From Dying As A Marvel Joke
By Chris Snellgrove
| Published
In many ways, Thor is the most dynamic character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. We first saw him as a serious god who talked like a bad Shakespearean actor and seemed fully engrossed in the tangled mythology of his people. However, Thor: Ragnarok effectively reshaped its titular deity into the MCU’s most consistently funny character. That film capitalized on Chris Hemsworth’s impressive comedy chops and made those first two Thor movies feel like a bad memory.
Now, Kenneth Branagh, the man who directed the first film, wants to direct the final Thor film. In a recent interview, he expressed his interest in returning to the Marvel fold to do one last movie with Hemsworth. However, he doesn’t want it to be a comedic film in the vein of Ragnarok or Love and Thunder. Instead, he wants to direct a gritty, Twilight of the Gods-type story that takes its creative cues from Hugh Jackman’s Logan. Considering that Hemsworth is one of the last vintage MCU superheroes and can’t keep fighting the good fight forever, Branagh’s idea is the absolute best way to take this fan-favorite character on one last ride.
Thor Up From The Floor Up
Younger fans might not remember, but Kenneth Branagh played a major role in the early days of the MCU. The director was arguably best known for his adaptations of William Shakespeare’s famous plays, and in a fun twist, he was chosen to direct the first Thor film in 2011. He ended up being a great choice because early Thor was presented as a kind of Shakespearean character: he’s all pomp and circumstance, barking out old-timey phrases while dealing with the inevitable drama caused by his conniving brother, Loki.
Marvel wanted Branagh to come back for the sequel, but the director refused; he didn’t like the intense hustle and bustle of producing such a large-scale blockbuster, especially if it meant getting almost no break between films. But in a recent interview with Business Insider, he admitted that “Part of me would love to finish my relationship with [Thor]. I’d always wanted to do more and indeed had a couple of ideas, more in the territory of James Mangold’s brilliant Logan.” As a fan of the various other Thor movies, he declared, “I would love to see Chris Hemsworth and the others have their own individual final story that takes Thor into a glorious twilight.”
Somehow, Logan Returned
Obviously, much of Branagh’s desire to direct a Logan-style movie is his personal drive to give the character a fitting, final story. But he also noted how such a film might resonate with longtime fans of the MCU. “There’s also this unique relationship with a large cinema audience that those characters now have that, for people who have grown up with them and their arc, I think it would be something very beautiful to take those characters into their own particular sunset.” This makes sense, of course: part of why Logan hit so hard is that an entire generation grew up cheering for Hugh Jackman in the various X-Men movies.
Sadly, Branagh didn’t offer any details for what his Thor film would look like. Given the comparison to Logan, it’s a safe bet that it will be a more serious movie, one that strips the character of the silliness that has characterized all of his appearances since Thor: Ragnarok. That might be a good thing, though: the critical failure of Thor: Love and Thunder has proven how hard it is to mix the character’s over-the-top humor with more serious storylines. Instead of having Thor’s final days in the MCU be spent playing a Deadpool Lite character, he could ensure he goes out like, well, a god!
Sadly, we’re not likely to ever see this movie. Branagh hasn’t broached the topic with Marvel Studios, and he’s the first to admit that Kevin Feige and other execs likely have their own plans for this popular character. Still, the super-serious Logan effectively revived audience interest in Wolverine after the lackluster fan reaction to X-Men Origins: Wolverine and The Wolverine. Given Thor’s disappointing appearance in movies like Love and Thunder and even Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, a Logan-style movie featuring everyone’s favorite Asgardian may be the best way to ensure that the fandom still believes in this god long after Hemsworth’s contract expires.