Looks like those rumors were on the money. Though we hadn’t heard much from “Thor” or the Natalie Portman talk in recent weeks, and many assumed they had died away, THR is reporting that Portman has been cast as the female lead in Kenneth Branagh’s adaptation of the Marvel comic.
Portman will play Jane Foster, who was evidently Thor’s major squeeze in the comics, something some of us had originally speculated to. Relative unknowns (not for long) Chris Hemsworth (“Star Trek”) has already been cast as Thor and Tom Hiddleston will play Loki, his evil brother and lord of mischief, proving that Branagh wants quality actors before he wants names (though that’s presuming they both can act, and we’ll take Branagh’s word for it, we haven’t seen them in a ton of films).
Production is still set to start in early 2010 with a May 20, 2011 release date.