Natalie Portman Beefing Over Thor 2 Direction?

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It’s a blow that could anger a thunder god, or at least anger someone who stands beside a thunder god, because Natalie Portman isn’t thrilled about Patty Jenkins no longer being at the helm of Thor 2.

The movie world stood up and took notice when Jenkins was tapped as the director of Thor 2 because this particular directing job would have made her the first woman to direct a superhero tentpole. Now, Natalie Portman is standing up and taking notice, according to The Hollywood Reporter, because the Oscar nominee isn’t happy about Jenkins and Marvel parting ways.

A lot depends on who you want to believe because Marvel’s people are saying that Jenkins wasn’t being decisive enough and the studio was worried that the November 2013 release date would be missed. Meanwhile, Jenkins people say Marvel might have grown uncomfortable with Jenkins because she was so explicit with her vision for Thor 2. Personally, I can’t wrap my head around the studio’s complaint because exactly how decisive is a director supposed to be when the script is being re-written?

Portman had campaigned to get Jenkins on as director of the film and she was excited about taking part in a project that would open doors for women and pave the way for female directors to take charge of similar movies in the future. Now, the star is so upset that only a contractual obligation is keeping her attached to Thor 2, and Marvel is reportedly trying to smooth things over by including her in discussions about who to get as a replacement.

Of course, the elephant in the room is the question of whether being a woman had anything to with Jenkins being separated from the project. Marvel says gender had nothing to with the decision but it doesn’t really look great that the two people currently being considered for the director’s chair are both guys.

2 Comments

1. 

   David Scholes

   December 16, 2011 at 7:40 pm

   We’ll probably never know the full story.

   I had no beef with Jenkins as Director and no one is a bigger fan of Thor than me. I would just like to see them sort the Director issue. It would be good if their final choice was someone who understood the principal character and other things Asgardian (at least the Marvel version).

   Reply
2. 

   Zeit_im_sein

   May 27, 2012 at 6:32 am

   Ok, honestly, why do I see a picture of Keira Knightley from King Arthur with this article, dudes?

   Reply