Alexander Skarsgard Says He Isn't Playing Thor

Possibly the biggest question marks in the entire Avengers arc for Marvel Studios center around Thor. Is Kenneth Branagh the right director for the material? Is the material good fodder for a film? If it's not a hit, should the character even factor into The Avengers movie? The first two questions are impossible to answer, although just from what I know of Thor having read it as a kid, I'm not sold on Branagh, but I'm not sure it would matter because it's even harder to say it's cut out for a film adaptation. As for that third question, there's probably no avoiding it since Avengers should be in production around the time Thor is released in the summer of 2011. Perhaps the biggest key to success hinges on who will play Thor. The name the rumors have most commonly attracted lately is Alexander Skarsgard, the burly Swedish actor who plays Eric Northman on HBO's True Blood. More than any of the other choices, he looks the part and the True Blood connection gives him a little more exposure before embarking on a big time role like this. Unfortunately, it looks like it won't happen. During an interview about True Blood with The Fifth Letter of the Alphabet, Skarsgard was asked point blank whether or not he will be playing Thor. "No, I don't think so," the actor replied. "I haven't gotten the call, so..." Now, because of Marvel's shuffling of this project from 2010 to 2011, it might be that producers are still canvasing Hollywood to find other options. I can't think of anyone right now who's a better fit. Still, there's growing belief that Natalie Portman and Josh Hartnett are already done deals for other roles in the film, so maybe Skarsgard is out in the cold. But if that's true, who steps in?

Comments

[Carl]

Vote Skarsgard 4 Asgard here: http://skarsgard4asgard.wordpress.com/

[Dan]

He looks like thor and he's a good actor to boot. He has a commanding presence as well. I'm just wondering why it did not work out.