Thor: The Dark World Tadanobu Asano, Jaimie Alexander, and Rene Russo. In "Thor: The Dark World", Thor teams up with Loki to save the Nine Realms from the Dark Elves led by the vengeful Malekith, who intends to plunge the universe into darkness. Development of "Thor: The Dark World" began in April 2011, when producer Kevin Feige announced plans for a sequel to follow the crossover film "The Avengers". In July 2011, Kenneth Branagh, the director of "Thor", withdrew from the project. Brian Kirk and Patty Jenkins were considered to direct the film before Taylor was hired in January 2012. The supporting cast filled
Superhero film film in Academy Award history with 8 nominations with two wins for Best Sound Editing and Best Supporting Actor for Heath Ledger's portrayal of The Joker. The 2010s has generally continued the box-office success of superhero films seen in the previous decade. In 2010, Matthew Vaughn's adaptation of "Kick-Ass" was released, followed by "Iron Man 2" a month later. 2011 releases included "The Green Hornet" (2011), "Green Lantern" (2011), and "" (2011). Following references to the "Avengers Initiative" in the "Iron Man" films and "The Incredible Hulk", Marvel released "Thor" on May 6, 2011, followed by "" on July 22,