Kevin Feige and writers Ashley Edward Miller and Zack Stentz reveal concept behind Thor

Kevin Feige and writers Ashley Edward Miller and Zack Stentz reveal concept behind Thor

Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige and Thor writers Ashley Edward Miller and Zack Stentz explain their process for adapting the comic book god into a movie with mainstream appeal. Check it out...

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By Fireblade - May 12, 2011 05:05 PM EST
Filed Under: Thor
Source: Geek Files



THOR has been around in the pages of Marvel's comics since 1962 and has just made his first journey to the big screen.

Ashley Edward Miller and Zack Stentz (pictured above) worked on the screenplay (along with Don Payne) and will be at the MCM Expo London Comic-Con on May 27 to 29. The two writers also penned X-Men: First Class.

The Coventry Telegraph has an interview in which Marvel Studios boss (and Thor producer) Kevin Feige joins Miller and Stentz to explain the process for adapting the comic book god into a mainstream Hollywood blockbuster.

Feige said: "There are a lot of fun things that Stan [Lee] and Jack [Kirby] did in the early Thor comics - that Walt Simonson brought to life later - that J. Michael Straczynski has done an amazing job handling in the recent comics. He has taken the myths and brought them home. You may have heard of Thor, Loki, Odin…what you didn’t know is that they’re real.

"And that if you could get intergalactic transportation, and bust through a few dimensions and other spatial rifts in the process, you would come upon them. That’s the concept that has been developed and has been brought to this adaptation.”

Miller adds: “At the point in the other stories where the hero is bitten by a spider or hit by a gamma blast, Thor is stripped of every quality and possession that makes him what he believes he is.  And on top of that, he is banished to a strange place.  That makes him a displaced prince who is now a pauper - and so, he’s one of us.” 

Stentz says it's also through Jane Foster that the fallen hero learns who he is: "This is where Thor is transformed, this is his journey.  He is this close to packing it in, because he’s not who he used to be.  But then, he discovers what he can be.”   

So it seems Marvel and the writers wanted the movie to have a relatable human element rather than just be a Lord of the Rings-style fantasy set in Asgard. Was this the right approach? The fan reaction has been mixed about some of the human comedy elements on Earth. Did it work to ground the story on Earth or should they have gone all-out for epic mythical fantasy?

For the full interview, head over to the Coventry Telegraph's Geek Files.
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Jarvisjackrabbit
Jarvisjackrabbit - 5/12/2011, 6:05 PM
I think it worked well. It would have been silly to try to fit Thor into the same cinematic universe as Iron Man, Captain America, Hawkeye, and even Hulk otherwise. I even laughed at all the goofy little jokes. "Meow meow, what's meow meow?" Loved it. I'm glad it was as grounded as it was. It was a massive step toward having cosmic stories that are more vast in scope.
TorturedXGenius
TorturedXGenius - 5/12/2011, 6:58 PM
if you read the first script by Mark it;s very Lord of the Rings-esque, and it would of cost TDKR money lol

it's a very different tone from that script to the one that leaked/what we saw in the theaters...either would of worked but the movie version was better for becuz of the modern feel to it
spideyvic
spideyvic - 5/12/2011, 7:54 PM
i agree with jarvisjackrabbit It very much worked, and they pretty much had to include alot about midgard. Otherswise they would've had a hard time tying this in into the Avengers,

THOR is my most favorite marvel movie to date!!
warlock
warlock - 5/12/2011, 10:26 PM
Why does every body keep saying "thor was great but it neded more of this more of that more of the worriors 3, ffffff the woriors three this movies about thor not them they were even lucky to get thepart they had. Cuz all they needed was a cameo. This is thors 1st movie and it was great the way they combined his universe with iron man and hulk and the way its leading into avengers. Hes going to be great in avengers wich the worriors 3 not going to be in but they will be better in a sequel.
Orphix
Orphix - 5/13/2011, 1:47 AM
One problem I had with the story (and this is just personal taste) is that it didn't have a longer sequence set in 10th century Norway.

My reason for this is that the Asgardians are worshipped as gods by the vikings BUT we see Odin telling a young Thor and Loki about all this history. So how could the vikings have worshiped Thor and Loki (along with Odin and the rest) when they had yet to grow up?

Now I understand the narrative problem with this. The fact is this is an origin story of sorts, not just for Thor, but for Loki too. If they were both adult in teh 10th Centuary Loki was still yet to become the evil, mischevious character we see him change into during the course of the film. So vikings could not of seen him as the 'Trickster God'.

So if the first act was set around the 10th centuary we could, perhaps, have shown why Loki and Thor are were worhsipped at the time. Afterall in the film we see their mythology in the children's book Selvig picks up in the library.

Is it wrong of me to think this? Does this make me too geeky?? Or am I being stupid and missing a basic point?

I am troubled!
nhoj3
nhoj3 - 5/13/2011, 6:23 AM
I really don't know what people are complaining about in terms of the comedy. I thought it was well placed, fit in line with what what happening at the time, and genuinely funny.

And never.... NEVER did it make light of Thor, or camp him up, etc. Not EVERY film has to be The Dark Knight you know.
THORION76
THORION76 - 5/13/2011, 7:03 AM
THOR was a great movie, and i loved how funny it was and all the action it had . If the movie would have been 25 minute's longer it would have been perfect. with the extra time they could have put more into the Jane Foster angle with Thor falling in love with her. And put more into the destroyer battle.
mikefont
mikefont - 5/13/2011, 7:38 AM
Hey Orphix,
I get your point, but when they showed Thor and Loki as kids, it could have easily been the 1st or 2nd century and not the 10th century Norway. Just because it was a historical narrative in the beginning, it doesn't mean that it was ALL at one specific time...IMO
getdaball1
getdaball1 - 5/13/2011, 7:41 AM
Orphix - you make a great point - I thought of this myself even.. -In that timeline - the Comics portrayed and even Norse Mythology - that Loki and Thor were young adults- and Thor even joined the Viking Warriors on their raids - so you are not alone. Still - the fact that they made reference to the Vikings and Norse Mythology was awesome!!
mikefont
mikefont - 5/13/2011, 7:42 AM
@ Thorion76,

More Destroyer battle would have been excellent..I felt it was kinda short too
niknik
niknik - 5/13/2011, 8:19 AM
Yeah, it was way too short. The Destroyer is as powerful as Thor. It should have been a major throwdown of epic proportions, much like a Thor\Hulk battle should be. Hope they pick up on this for the Avengers film.

Orphix - You are correct. I noticed this too and it was a slight problem for me. As Mikefont points out, it could have been two different points in our history but the point here being the storytellers (if this is true) didn't explain this at all. It could have and should have been explained if that were the case and it was not, thus it looks like they have in fact screwed up in that regard. Norse mythology refers to an ADULT Thor as their god, not a child.
HelaGood
HelaGood - 5/13/2011, 9:01 AM
saw it last night.... LOVED IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
but like everyone else, i want MORE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Phlegmbot
Phlegmbot - 5/13/2011, 1:06 PM
Thor was a great movie...my favorite of the Marvel movies by far. The Asgard scenes made 300 look like a dollar twenty-three. But it was missing one MAJOR thing: EMOTION.

(Pardon my long post...)

In a film, a character is meant to go through some kind of growth through an emotional journey. Peter loses Ben and fights crime. Superman had "all those powers, but couldn't even save him." Tony Stark's world view was changed by his kidnapping and near-death experience. As a result, they didn't choose to do good, they felt they MUST.

Thor, however, just b/c he's smitten by Jane Foster, decides, "I will defend these people." Which was very surface. The solution would've been simple: Kat Denning's character should've died.

I liked her character, but w/her death would've come Foster's emotional breakdown, the loss of "a sister" of sorts (which would inform Thor's character later), and it would've created a closer bond between she & Thor. Thor needed to witness human grief, death, and actual love...and when he sacrificed himself, it would've packed a LOT more punch.

That's my opinion. And, clearly, I wanted to share it somewhere. =]
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