Thor: The Dark World Trivia

Trivia for Thor: The Dark World.


 * Josh Dallas was supposed to return as Fandral but commitment with his TV show Once Upon a Time prevented him from returning. He was replaced with Zachary Levi who was the original choice for the role.
 * Mads Mikkelsen was considered for the role of Malekith, but he dropped out due to scheduling conflicts with Hannibal (a role portrayed by Anthony Hopkins in three films, and who plays Odin in this film). Christopher Eccleston was cast instead.
 * Despite The Avengers and Iron Man 3 to be the last films with a Paramount logo based on the original five-movie deal between Marvel and Paramount that was made following Iron Man before Disney bought the distribution rights to those two films from Paramount after the Marvel acquisition by Disney. The Marvel Studios logo appears instead of any Disney logo.
 * Chris Hemworth has stated that, under Alan Taylor's direction, the second installment is to have a more Viking-influenced with more resemblance to Norse mythology when compared to the more science-fiction-themed first installment.
 * Though Tom Hiddleston reprises his role of Loki, the actor has stated that he is not expected to be a central villain and is rather seen taking responsibility for his crimes in The Avengers.
 * In late 2011, Patty Jenkins was officially announced as director for this film. In December 2011, she backed out of the project due to "creative differences".
 * In Thor, the casket of Ancient Winters was held by the Frost Giants of Jotunheim; in the comics it was held by the Dark Elves of Svartalfheim, in particular their leader Malekith the Accursed. In the film Loki holds the Casket and asks Odin if he is accursed, in homage to Malekith. Malekith himself appears in this film.
 * At the end of September, Jaimie Alexander was injured on the London film set: "It was raining, it was dark outside, it was like 5 in the morning - and I went down a metal staircase and slipped and slipped a disc in my thoracic spine and chipped 11 of my vertebrae. I knocked my left shoulder out of place and tore my rhomboid on my right side... It took me out of filming for a month!"
 * Natalie Portman was reportedly so upset that talks between Marvel and Patty Jenkins broke down that she refused to return for the sequel but she was forced to return due to her contract.
 * Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje described Kurse as "an amalgamation of a bull and a lava-like creature." For his role as Kurse, he underwent a daily three hours of make-up and 40-pound prosthetics: "I'm sure there will be a certain amount of CGI, but a good 80% was me in that suit."
 * The film was shot in England under the title "Thursday Mourning". Thursday is considered by historians to be named after Thor ("Thursday" - Thor's Day).
 * In the comics, Malekith is scarred on the right side of his face; in this film it's on the left side.
 * As a nod to the comics, Malekith's armor has a star emblem in the center.
 * Carter Burwell was to write the score but left the film over creative differences and was replaced by "Iron Man 3" composer Brian Tyler.
 * Christopher Eccleston and Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje worked together in the 2009 film, G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra.
 * Tom Hiddleston describes Loki as a "firework" in this film: "Well, where next? What's he going to do? What level of remorse does he have? If he does have any remorse or regret, why? Who does he feel guilty in front of, and who does he laugh in the face of? What's his motivation? If he stands to win, what does he stand to win? As a character you've got all these new motivations, but as an actor I am absolved from playing hero or villain - I'm just the live wire. And that was more fun than I can possibly tell you."
 * Alan Taylor was so impressed by Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje's performance as Kurse, he made Adewale do all his stunts because the stuntmen did not move the same way as he did.
 * The stone creature Thor fights is a Kronan, an alien being that appeared in Thor's first comic, "Journey Into Mystery" #83.
 * An aerial camera crew flew to Iceland to film the Dettifoss waterfall in Iceland (Europe's most powerful waterfall) from every angle, so it was used as a base for the waterfalls at Asgard.
 * There were about 30 hammers made for Thor of various weights for different uses. The main hammer was made from aluminum but it is replicated in different materials and weights, including a 'soft' version for stunts. Of the 30, five versions were used most often, including the 'lit hammer,' that emits light when lightning strikes.
 * A new language was created specifically for the Dark Elves. Christopher Eccleston (Malekith) and Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (Kurse) had to memorize some of their dialogue in this alien script.
 * The filmmakers chose Iceland as the setting for the dark world of Svartalfheim, for its black volcanic landscapes. In real life, during the viking age when Iceland was discovered they considered it to be the home of Surtr, a mythological character also turned into a comic book villian.
 * The stunt men and extras playing the Dark Elves had to go through a training period where they practiced standing tall and proud since the dark elves are envisioned to be a noble people. Prosthetics designer David White helped out too by designing the helmet so that the eye line was slightly pulled down, forcing the actors to tilt their heads slightly up and back, which gave them a very proud, strong feel.
 * Filming at the famous Stonehenge historical site proved to be a challenge. After finally getting permission from English Heritage, the filmmakers found out that there were lots of rules and regulations associated with filming there. They could only be in amongst the stones outside of the normal visiting hours. So shooting had to take place early in the morning before opening, which only gave the film crew about three hours before they had to pull back for wider shots once the stones were opened to the public. Being a heritage site, no one was allowed to touch the stones or walk on any stones, so a lot of logistics had to be applied to the filming there.
 * The VFXperts were influenced by the transformation sequences in "The Avengers" (the Hulk) and "An American Werewolf in London" (David Kessler) in changing Algrim into Kurse.
 * According to VFX supervisor Jake Morrison, the Harrows, the spaceships used by the Dark Elves, are powered by black holes: "A black hole pulls in all directions. You stick a box around it - but if you poke a hole in one side of the box it would pull in that direction. So effectively if you strap a craft around that you've got a propulsion drive which is kind of an impulsion drive."
 * It took six hours of make-up and 45 minutes in wardrobe to complete Malekith's look.
 * There are two post-credit scenes.