Though Thor: The Dark World won’t land in theaters until this November, people over at Marvel are already talking about what a third adventure might look like for the hammer-wielding Norse god. According to executive producer Craig Kyle, the set of the upcoming sequel is filled with hints at what fans can look forward to in sequels.
One area within Thor’s home realm of Asgard that definitely will make an appearance in Thor: The Dark World is the Einherjar training ground, said Kyle. In the Marvel comics, the Einherjar are warriors felled in combat, who spend life after death feasting and fighting, awaiting Ragnarok (the Norse doomsday), when they will arise to fight for Asgard once more.
Another aspect of Asgard that Kyle promises will be explored in future films is the Hall of Science, which contains all sorts of mythical inventions, discoveries and artifacts.
Kyle said of the Hall of Science that:
This is gonna be a pretty neat spot that we actually get to explore, which will go into the various breakthroughs and discoveries of the Asgardians where you’ll see functioning models of the Big Bang and all these wonderful technologies that no human has ever laid eyes on before.
One major feature of the Hall of Science is a giant, living tree connected to a cosmic tree called Yggdrasil, which lies at the center of the Thor universe. On Yggrasil’s role in the films, Kyle noted that:
The effects and woes and success of the universe are spoken through this, this living object. So, should the end of all things ever come this would probably be the first thing to fall. And we have a really tremendous scene in here with Thor and Odin.
Coming from someone so closely involved with the films, that’s a pretty blatant tease for future installments. By the “end of all things,” Kyle is clearly referring to Ragnarok, a catastrophic event that played a huge role in the comics. With the series exploring more aspects of Asgard, in addition to new realms, it seems reasonable that Marvel would want to take on such a major storyline at some point. When asked about the possibility of the Norse doomsday unfolding on the big screen sometime soon, Kyle would only say:
It’s one of the bigger stories, right? [LAUGHS] So, who knows? [LAUGHS]
In Thor: The Dark World, the threat posed by the evil Malekith (Christopher Eccleston) and his army of Dark Elves forces Thor (Chris Hemsworth) to embark on a dangerous quest to the enemy world of Svartalfheim, with love interest Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) and antagonist brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston) in tow. The film, directed by Alan Taylor, promises to introduce more of the series’ universe. In the map of the Nine Realms below, it appears that Marvel is taking Thor further away from his home with each subsequent film.
If Marvel follows the path set by Thor, which showcases the Frost Giants of Jotunheim, and Thor: The Dark World, which deals with the Dark Elves of Svartalfheim, the next logical enemy for the superhero to face would be Surtur, the fiery and demonic ruler of Muspelheim, the furthest realm from Agard. In the comics, Loki and Malekith worked together to free Surtur, who wrought havoc across all worlds.
When asked whether Malekith would be working on behalf of Surtur in Thor: The Dark World, Kyle replied:
It’s hard to say. [LAUGHS] I know in the comics he did.
When asked specifically about possible appearances for the Fire Demons over whom Surtur rules, Kyle had this to say:
You’re gonna see aliens from all over, uh, specifically, you know, it’ll be a wait and see. [LAUGHS] Like I said we are moving further out into the nine realms of the universe, so, you know, you can’t fly too far before you hit something else in the universe. So [LAUGHS] we’ll see.
Eventually, Marvel is sure to get to Ragnarok and Surtur, whether it be in Thor 3 or future films. The sheer quantity of storylines revolving around that fearsome antagonist is simply too high for the studio not to explore any of them at some point. Check out a panel from the comics featuring Surtur below:
Would you be excited to see Thor take on such a powerful, scary-looking enemy in future films, or are there other characters from the superhero’s rogues’ gallery whom you would want to see on the big screen first? Are you excited for Thor: The Dark World? Let us know in the comments section!
Thor: The Dark World opens November 8th.
