Most of us around the internet were surprised and excited about the idea of Patty Jenkins directing the next entry in the Thor franchise. Let’s be frank, it’s not often a female director is chosen to helm a big name project like this so it was a pretty big deal when it was initially announced. A lot of people were also pretty surprised when she abruptly severed ties with the project and stated that she would no longer be working on the project. One very surprised person was, allegedly, Natalie Portman who allegedly campaigned for the director the land the gig in the first place and that the directors departure wasn’t all sunshine and roses as depicted.
Source: Fused Film
THR says that Jenkins didn’t leave on her own terms, but rather Marvel Studios fired her. As aforementioned, this would seem to contradict with the original reports that Patty Jenkins had left Thor 2 on amicable terms. But the firing seemed to have caused a rift between a studio and a Thor co-star. Natalie Portman, who was the one who campaigned for Jenkins to be hired, is apparently infuriated by the fact that Marvel Studios fired Jenkins.
Given that Portman had given birth to a baby boy in June, the actress was considering retiring from acting entirely. However Portman is contractually obligated to appear in Thor 2, and Jenkins’ involvement has said boost her enthusiasm for the project. Even Chris Hemsworth said Jenkins had a grasp on the story for Thor 2. Now that Jenkins has been let go, Portman is up in arms, and Marvel is working overtime to smooth things over with the Thor co-star by involving her in the discussion process.
But as to the reason why Jenkins was fired, the trade cites four possible reasons:
• Marvel fired Jenkins because they were concerned she was not moving swiftly enough toward the November 2013 release.
• The company felt Jenkins showed “a lack of overall clarity in her choices.”
• Marvel were initially convinced by Portman’s enthusiasm, but second guessed their choice when they started talking to writers.
• “Marvel had certain things they needed to achieve. There were constraints on what [Jenkins] could do creatively.”
I was pretty interested in the idea of Jenkins directing this project but you know what? I trust Marvel more than I do Jenkins. Don’t get me wrong I’m not against female directors in the slightest. I just know that Marvel has been fairly particualar about how they’ve been handling their projects and so far I’m pretty happy with the direction they’ve taken with their characters. If they werent happy with Jenkins then I wholly trust their decision. It is still a little disappointing but I prefer that Marvel find the person they think will bring us the best Thor 2 possible.
Furthermore this story has a couple of holes. Since when do actresses outright retire after having kids? Sure she may have enough money to ride off into the sunset but she’s a young woman and always struck me as a career actress.
