Thor: The Dark World

Thor: The Dark World is the upcoming sequel to Thor and the eighth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It will be released on November 8, 2013 and will be available in 3D. Chris Hemsworth and much of the cast from the first film reprise their roles in the film. The film is being directed by Alan Taylor.

Plot
Eons ago, Bor, father of Odin, vanquished the Dark Elves led by Malekith, who sought to return the universe to its state before creation using a force called the Aether. Fighting off Malekith's enhanced warriors the Kursed, Bor contains the Aether within a stone column. Unbeknownst to him, Malekith, his lieutenant Algrim and others escape into suspended animation. In the present, in Asgard, Loki stands before Odin in shackles and is sentenced to prison, while Thor, alongside warriors Fandral, Volstagg and Sif repeal invaders from Vanaheim, home of their comrade Hogun; it is the final battle in a two-year war. In London, astrophysicist Jane Foster, who has not seen Thor in that time, attempts a lunch date with a man named Richard but is interrupted by her intern Darcy Lewis. She takes Foster to an abandoned factory where the laws of physics are upended in spots and some children have found that objects thrown down a stairwell reappear above them or else vanish. Foster also learns her colleague Dr. Erik Selvig has apparently gone mad and has been detained after attempting to conduct scientific experiments at Stonehenge naked. Foster, after bringing her own scientific equipment to the factory, is sucked into a vortex where the Aether enters her.

The Asgardians learn a rare alignment of the cosmic Nine Realms is imminent, and at spots where the Realms touch, as at the factory, passages are created. When Heimdall tells Thor that Foster is no longer on Earth, Thor begins a search for her there. She has awakened in the factory after hours in the other realm, and finds herself releasing powerful energy when a police officer on the scene touches her. Sensing the force's unearthly nature, Thor brings Foster to Asgard, but its physicians, including Eir, cannot remove it. Odin realizes she is the Aether's vessel and this heralds a catastrophic prophecy. Frigga — Odin's wife, Thor's mother and Loki's adoptive mother — takes Foster under her wing. In holographic form, Frigga visits Loki in his cell to convey her love and disappointment. Malekith and his forces, awakened by the release of the Aether, attack Asgard and turn Algrim into an enhanced warrior called "the last of the Kursed." Malekith and Algrim find Foster in Frigga's chambers, and kill Frigga. Foster there is only a hologram, however; the real Foster is with Thor, who has been ordered to remain and protect Asgard, not pursue the retreating invaders. Following Frigga's funeral, Thor reluctantly teams with Loki, who knows a secret passage out. With Volstagg and Sif guarding his flank, the two commandeer a Dark Elf spaceship and escape with the Foster. With Fandral's help and a separate flying boat, they escape pursuing Asgardian forces.

On Earth, Lewis, who has tried in vain to reach S.H.I.E.L.D., has Selvig released from a hospital's mental ward with the help of her own intern, Ian. Thor, Loki and Foster confront Malekith and Algrim at a desolate waste, where, after a hoax in which Loki appears to betray Thor, Algrim batters Thor and Malekith takes the Aether from Foster. Loki evidently sacrifices himself to keep Malekith from retrieving the Aether, killing Algrim in the process. It is to no avail, as Malekith escapes with the Aether. Thor and Foster return to Earth after stumbling to a portal between realms. The battle shifts to London, where Malekith, in a towering space-vessel, will use the Aether at the exact moment and place of the Nine Realms' convergence to destroy the universe and restore the dark-energy state in which the Dark Elves thrive. As Thor battles Malekith, Foster and Selvig use devices they've constructed to shift energy where the Nine Realms meet. At the last moment, they transport Malekith and his ship to another realm, where the crumbling ship crushes him.

In Asgard, Thor declines Odin's offer to take the throne and tells Odin of Loki's sacrifice. As Thor leaves, the image of Odin reverts to the true form of shapeshifter Loki, who, disguised earlier as a warrior, has usurped the throne. In a mid-credits scene, Volstagg and Sif visit the alien Collector and entrust to his care the remains of the Aether, revealed as one of six "Infinity Stones". In a post-credits scene, Foster and Thor reunite on Earth.

Cast

 * Chris Hemsworth as Thor Odinson
 * Jaimie Alexander as Thor as Sif
 * Christopher Eccleston as Malekith
 * Tom Hiddleston as Loki Laufeyson
 * Chris Evans as Loki as Steve Rogers/Captain America
 * Anthony Hopkins as Loki as Odin Borson
 * Natalie Portman as Jane Foster
 * Jaimie Alexander as Sif
 * Anthony Hopkins as Odin Borson
 * Ray Stevenson as Volstagg
 * Zachary Levi as Fandral
 * Tadanobu Asano as Hogun
 * Rene Russo as Frigga
 * Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje as Algrim the Strong/Kurse
 * Idris Elba as Heimdall
 * Alice Krige as Eir
 * Stellan Skarsgård as Erik Selvig
 * Kat Dennings as Darcy Lewis
 * Clive Russell as Tyr Odinson
 * Richard Brake as Captain of the Einherjar
 * Chris O'Dowd as Richard
 * Tony Curran as Bor Burison
 * Jonathan Howard as Ian Boothby
 * Ramone Morgan as John
 * Obada Alassadi as Navid
 * Imaan Chentouf as Maddie
 * Claire Brown as Hildegund
 * Henry Calcutt as Volstagg's Child #1
 * Ava Estella Caton as Volstagg's Child #2
 * Abbie McCann as Volstagg's Child #3
 * To-be-confirmed actor as Duhg
 * A Kronan
 * Benicio del Toro as Taneleer Tivan/The Collector
 * Ophelia Lovibond as an aide to The Collector

Continuity and References to the Marvel Cinematic Universe

 * Jane slaps Loki stating "That was for New York!", referring to the Chitauri that attacked New York in The Avengers.
 * Jane mentions The Avengers.
 * Erik is mentally suffering from the events of The Avengers. News reports at the beginning of the film mention how Selvig was responsible for the Chitauri invasion.
 * Darcy attempts to contact S.H.I.E.L.D. while awaiting Jane's return. She also states how S.H.I.E.L.D. is likely to appear and conceal the strange occurrences.
 * Loki has been imprisoned in Asgard for his crimes depicted in Thor and The Avengers.
 * Loki briefly masquerades as Steve Rogers (among others) while talking to Thor.
 * Taneleer Tivan/The Collector is approached by Sif and Volstagg with the Aether, one of the six Infinity Stones, entrusting him with its care.

Production History
Natalie Portman and Kat Dennings are both contracted to reprise their roles in future installments in the Thor franchise. Chris Hemsworth returned as Thor Odinson in the sequel and Thor director Kenneth Branagh announced that he would not return to direct the sequel.

On October 13, 2011 it was confirmed that Patty Jenkins would direct the film, but on December 2011, Jenkins exited the project, citing "creative differences".

The studio then selected Alan Taylor, best known for directing episodes of the HBO fantasy series Game Of Thrones, to direct the sequel.

The film was shot in Iceland and London, England.

Gallery

 * See: Thor: The Dark World/Gallery