Film News: Patty Jenkins Apparent Front Runner to Direct ‘Thor 2’

CHICAGO – Comic book and super hero fans may be scratching their heads at the latest rumors coming out of Marvel. Apparently, Patty Jenkins, who only has one featured film under her belt, is the current front runner to direct the next Thor film.

Jenkins, who wrote and directed the 2003 film “Monster” (which won a beautied-down Charlize Theron the Oscar for Best Actress), has emerged as the lead candidate according to Indie Wire [11]. Jenkins’ only other directorial credits come from an episode of “Arrested Development,” a few episodes of “Entourage,” and the pilot episode of AMC’s “The Killing.” The news is particularly strange as Jenkins has not worked on a project that demands major visual effects, as “Thor 2” no doubt will.

The first “Thor” was directed by actor/director Kenneth Branagh, who was more known for his acting in the 1994 “Frankenstein,” the 1989 “Henry V,” and as Professor Lockhart in “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets,” than for his direction in feature films. However, Marvel was not afraid to hire Branagh for the job, and this may be a sign that Jenkins may just be cheap enough and unknown enough for Marvel to get a deal for her direction.

Also, the news of the possible Jenkins hire is particularly surprising because earlier this summer rumors had surrounded Brian Kirk as the new director. Kirk has directed episodes of “Dexter,” “Boardwalk Empire,” and “Game of Thrones,” making him an affordable director with an experienced skill set that falls more in the lines of “Thor” than anything Jenkins has done.

Marvel has been known for making curious directorial hires in the past (which often work out), but Jenkins may be the most peculiar yet. We’ll have to wait until the t’s are crossed, the i’s are dotted, and the ink dries before we can put much more speculation into the hire of Jenkins as the new Marvel director.

[12]	By TIM MARTENS [13] Staff Writer HollywoodChicago.com tim@hollywoodchicago.com [12]