natalie Portman

Natalie Portman not showing up in the next Thor movie, Thor: Ragnarok, is not news. (Neither is the addition of Tessa Thompson to the cast in her absence.) We’ve known that for a few months now. The explanation for Portman’s absence hasn’t be fully revealed yet, though, and that’s something Marvel Grand Poobah Kevin Feige got into a little bit during his recent appearance on the Empire Film Podcast.

The Thor franchise never quite did right by Natalie Portman. Sure, she had good chemistry with her superheroic co-star, Chris Hemsworth. But through two films, she never really got any true standout moments, and mostly just played an effective (if very intelligent) damsel in distress for the God of Thunder. She certainly never got the kind of scenes or dialogue that made other Marvel women like Gwyneth Paltrow’s Pepper Potts or Hayley Atwell’s Agent Carter such crucial and beloved parts of the wider Marvel Universe. If we’re being honest, the role of Dr. Jane Foster, at least as it was written, wasn’t worthy of her talents.

If you boiled down Marvel's movies to a basic formula, the first Thor film would be a perfect example of it. It's got some decent superhero action, a lot of shoehorned-in S.H.I.E.L.D. stuff, and one huge feather in its cap: A sense of humor about itself and its characters. Luckily, the new sequel, Thor: The Dark World, is like its predecessor in that it's not afraid to include some levity. As long

Disney and Marvel are giving high-school girls ages 14 and older the chance to meet their science heroes. In the spirit of Thor: The Dark World's super-scientist Jane Foster, the National Academy of Sciences, Underwriters Laboratories and Dolby Laboratories have teamed up with the companies to give a group of girls the chance to meet some of the most successful women in the fields of science, tech

Based on the Asgardian war goddess devised by comic book creators Jack Kirby and Stan Lee, Lady Sif emerged from 2011's Thor motion picture as something of a breakout character, with fans complaining that the charismatic performer Jamie Alexander didn't get enough screen time and asking that she star in a spinoff of her own. Marvel Studios seems to have listened, with early reports indicating the

A little more info about what's to come in November's Thor: The Dark World has come to light thanks to USA Today, including what role Natalie Portman's Jane Foster will play in the proceedings, as well as where a big chunk of the action will take place...

In theaters this fall is Thor: The Dark World, the sequel to Marvel's previous film starring the God of Thunder, and the second follow up to last summer's The Avengers. Some set pictures have already popped up online, and today the studio has released the first poster for the film, with news that a trailer will arrive online Tuesday on iTunes Trailers...

Captain America's live action footage debut was complimented on Super Bowl Sunday by a new commercial featuring previously unseen footage from Thor, another Marvel Studios film based the classic Avengers superheroes. In the new Thor ad, we see more of Natalie Portman in her role as Jane Foster, who seems incredulous as to the mysterious Thor's origins as a god of the Norse pantheon...

In the first not-an-obviously-fake-casting-rumor news since the confirmation of Tom Hardy last month, it appears that Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises is suffering an embarrassment of riches with respect to its potential female leads...

A brief video clip didn't make a huge deal about outing Sir Anthony Hopkins' look for Kenneth Branagh's "Thor" movie this week. Hopkins appeared front and center during a montage of set shots, though, which also displayed leading man Chris Hemsworth in costume and a brief interview about how things have been progressing...