This week in superhero news: (More) 'Thor' casting news and a 'Spider-Man 4' update

Actor Tom Hiddleston has been cast as villain Loki (sorry Josh Hartnett) in Marvel Studio's adaptation of Thor. Director Kenneth Branagh worked with Hiddleston on the London production of Chekhov's Ivanov and both starred in the BBC miniseries Wallander.

I've never actually seen anything Hiddleston has starred in, but his previous work with Kenneth Branagh will obviously help with the project. Thor opens May 20, 2011.

Now on to the Spider-Man 4 news. Director Sam Raimi has revealed that Spider-Man 4 will start shooting in February of 2009. Raimi explains why he has to force this upon us why he loves the character so much:

"I love Peter Parker. I've always loved the Spider-Man comics, and I fell like I still know more about the character that I think can bring to the screen - and perhaps make it great if I do it right. It's the same reason I keep reading the Spider-Man comic books. I'm really enamored with the character and now I feel like I have a history with him. I'd like to really make a great picture with him and bring the character to life at a level of detail that I've never realized before. It's almost like I have a desire to do something I've been trying to do right and haven't yet been able to. Not exactly." [LA Times via The Playlist]

That's about enough of that Mr. Raimi. Somewhere between Spider-Man 3 and just now, I had forgotten how much I really loved the first two Spider-Man films. I'm beginning to wonder if Raimi is morphing into George Lucas or something - like the guy needs to be saved from destroying his own work.

Chris Hemsworth to play Thor

Don't know who he is? You can catch him as George Kirk in the new Star Trek movie. Thor's director Kenneth Branagh has chosen Australian actor, Chris Hemsworth to be Thor. Hemsworth's casting is one of those rare and amazing Hollywood stories:

Ward [partner and co-founder of William Ward's ROAR management who reps Hemsworth] had found Chris during one of the manager's many scouting trips to Australia. Ward brought him to Los Angeles and really put him out there to casting directors and production executives.

Chris had read for the part of Thor but wasn't given a test because a casting director had nixed him early on. I'm told Chris' younger brother Liam (who's also a ROAR client) then tested for the role of Thor, but Marvel's Kevin Feigy passed. That's when Ward called up Feigy and said, "You've got to reconsider Chris. He's your guy." So Feigy let Chris read again. And once Marvel put him on tape, it was "Oh my god". Branagh came to town last week and saw the Chris test and made the final decision today.

What a week for Chris since, on Thursday, he just got cast as the Red Dawn lead. Brother Liam, who's only been in Los Angeles for 3 weeks and doesn't even have an agent yet, just got cast the male lead in Last Song opposite Miley Cyrus in the Disney film based on the Nicholas Sparks novel. Both brothers live in William Ward's guest house. Unreal! [Nikki Finke]

It is unreal, considering all the supposed frontrunners for the role. Everyone from Charlie Hunnam to Alexander Skarsgård had been suggested for Thor. I had initially been rooting for Hunnam, and I still think he would make a great Thor. But after seeing Hemsworth's brief, but memorable, and rather touching performance in Star Trek, I can't help but feel happy for the guy.

This week in superhero news: the 'Thor' casting edition part 2

Kevin Feige, Marvel's President of Production tells Empire Magazine that there will be some cast revelations for Thor in approximately a month. He had this to say:

“We will probably be having cast announcements in the next month or so on Thor," he told us. "We’re looking to cast Loki and Odin soon, and the main female role. And we’ll also hopefully have lockdown shortly, gearing towards the beginning of production, which will be early next year. So I think there will be a lot of announcements between now and then."

"But [director Kenneth] Branagh’s here, we’re prepping, and he’s put together some spectacular animatics already for our first action scene. We’re digging into the second and third now, and we are just embarking on a rewrite of the draft."

So, it doesn't sound like the Norse God himself will be cast just yet. I would, however, like to make my Thor choice know yet again, Mr. Feige - ahem:

This week in superhero news: the 'Thor' casting edition

So, what do we know about the upcoming Thor movie? It's coming out in the summer of 2011, and a bunch of blond relatively unknown dudes are being considered - Tom Hiddleston, Liam Hemsworth, Joel Kinnaman, Alexander Skarsgård , and Charlie Hunnam. And Channing Tatum, who is apparently out of the running because it would be bizarre casting he isn't Nordic-looking enough. Meanwhile, the Alexander Skarsgård casting rumours have died down considerably (making that Nordic-looking criteria sound like bull).

This week, it's Charlie Hunnam's turn in the Thor spotlight. According to IGN:

Hunnam confirmed that he has indeed screen-tested for the role of the god of thunder. He has only shot one screen test so far, and when asked if it involved running around with a helmet and a hammer, he replied with a smile, "Something like that."

Hunnam didn't know what the status of the casting was but said that his people have been talking to Marvel. He believes that since Marvel pushed the start date of Thor back a few months the studio is taking its time to make the best decision for the film.

So, while Marvel takes its sweet time, I can always speculate. I think most people want to see Skarsgård get the Thor role. He has the right look, so it would be near perfect casting. But, I'm more familliar with Hunnam's work than with Skarsgård 's, and from what I've seen, Hunnam is a damn good actor. In half of his films he's downright unrecognizable, so while he might not look as perfect as Skarsgaard does, his talent should at least put him in the running. He's not the most popular choice, but I wouldn't go insane with anger if he were cast.