It looks as if Brian Blessed has been cast in the upcoming adaptation of the Norse god-turned-superhero Marvel Comic Thor, as the god of thunder’s father Odin. The news comes from the recently launched Bleeding Coolcomics news website, run by long time comics gossip journalist Rich Johnston. Johnston previously worked in London radio advertising where he had occasion to work with Blessed on a couple of campaigns.
Immediately identifable by his booming voice, Blessed has been in numerous genre projects, mostly noteably the 1980 big screen adaptation Flash Gordon, which we love here, where he played Vultan, Prince of the Hawkmen. Although his performance was memorably tongue-in-cheek, He was much more restrained in actor/director Kenneth Branagh’s 1996 big screen adaptation of Shakespeare’s Hamlet. As Thor‘s director, it should be interesting to see which acting style Branagh allows Blessed to run with.
Thor is targeted with a May 20, 2011 release.
So, did I call this one early or did I call this one early? It only makes sense-Blessed has been in just about every one of Branagh’s movies, why wouldn’t he use him here. Now all we have to do is get Danny Trejo for Hogun the Grim, Branagh himself for Fandral the Dashing (come on, you know his big bloated ego won’t let him stay behind the camera on this one), and the guy who voiced Beast on the old Fox X-Men cartoon as Volstagg, and we’re good to go. I just hope someone reins Branagh in on his… Read more »