Thor: The Dark World is considered one of the weakest links in the Marvel Cinematic Universe for many reasons, but had it gone as it was originally planned, it would have been very different – and it would have had Patty Jenkins as director. The MCU began in 2008 with Jon Favreau’s Iron Man and hasn’t stopped since, producing 22 more films and with many others currently in development. While most of these have been well received by viewers and critics, there are some that missed the mark and ended up being forgettable.
Such is the case of Thor’s second solo film, Thor: The Dark World. Directed by Alan Taylor (Terminator Genisys), the film followed Thor’s efforts to stop Malekith (Christopher Eccleston), leader of the Dark Elves, from releasing the Aether and bringing darkness to the Nine Realms. Although it was the film that confirmed the existence of the Infinity Stones in the MCU, Thor: The Dark World’s legacy doesn’t go beyond that, and ended up being the worst Thor film and one of the most forgettable films in the MCU.
Although Thor: The Dark World was praised for its visual style, there wasn’t much to praise in terms of narrative. The characters, even those that were good in Thor and The Avengers, were bland, Malekith’s intentions were not interesting (nor relevant, really), and Natalie Portman’s Jane Foster was demoted to damsel in distress. However, this wasn’t what Thor: The Dark World was originally supposed to be, and the initial concept was much different (and actually better), all thanks to Patty Jenkins, who was set to direct the film.
Patty Jenkins’ Thor 2 Would’ve Been Like Romeo & Juliet
Patty Jenkins was confirmed as director for Thor: The Dark World in October, 2011, and left the project two months later, citing “creative differences”. Details on what exactly made her leave the project were unknown for years, until she opened up about it in 2017 while promoting Wonder Woman, sharing what her idea for the film was about – and it would have taken the God of Thunder on a completely different direction.
Speaking to BuzzFeed News in 2017, Jenkins shared that her Thor sequel was based on William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, though not as you probably think. Jenkins’ idea was to have Jane stuck on Earth and Thor in Asgard (or wherever he was supposed to be in the story). Thor wouldn’t have been allowed to go back to Earth and save Jane because “Earth doesn’t matter”, but he would have found a way. Once here, Thor and Jane would have discovered that Malekith was hiding the dark energy inside of Earth because “he knows that Odin doesn’t care about Earth, and so he’s using Odin’s disinterest in Earth to trick him”. Jenkins added she “wanted it to be a grand [movie]” based on the literary classic, with a “war between the gods and the earthlings” and Thor saving the day and Earth as well.
In a different interview, this time with Uproxx, Jenkins said she didn’t think she could have made a good film out of what Marvel wanted for Thor: The Dark World because she “wasn’t the right director”, but if she could have done the story she wanted, she would have made “a great Thor”. While only the aforementioned “Romeo and Juliet space opera-like” concept is known, it’s enough to see that, had Marvel opened its mind earlier and allowed Jenkins’ to move forward with her Thor 2 pitch, it would have impacted the characters (and the rest of the MCU) very differently than the final product did.
Jenkins’ Thor 2 Would’ve Fixed A Lot Of Dark World’s Problems
As mentioned above, one of Thor: The Dark World’s biggest problems was how it approached Jane Foster’s arc. Kenneth Branagh’s Thor made her an astrophysicist and gave her a more relevant role in the story (though she still served as a romantic interest), but Thor 2 left all that behind and turned her instead into a damsel in distress, and one that was not only to be rescued and protected by Thor, but also by others, such as Thor’s mother, Frigga, who died protecting her. Taking into account other female characters in Jenkins’ works, including Wonder Woman, it’s safe to say Jane definitely wouldn’t have been the damsel in distress in Thor 2 had Jenkins’ pitch been used.
What is hard to say is how much Malekith’s role would have changed, as his intentions are obviously not clear in Jenkins’ pitch – nor in the film. However, it’s possible that Malekith could have either not been the villain or been one of two, as Kevin Feige revealed that Hela was almost the villain in Thor: The Dark World. It’s unknown if this was before Jenkins joined the project, while she was involved, or after she left, but the idea of Jenkins’ style applied to a villain like Hela is interesting, and one that will only live in imagination.
It’s Actually Good That Jenkins Didn’t Direct Thor 2
As good as Jenkins’ vision for Thor: The Dark World would have been, it’s better that it didn’t happen, and she knows it. Jenkins shared that directing Thor: The Dark World had much bigger implications than its seems, as it was not simply making a Marvel film of one of its biggest heroes, but she was also representing women directors everywhere. In an interview with IndieWire, Jenkins said that, as “heartbreaking as it was”, she couldn’t do something she didn’t believe in and in that big of a scale, and that it was going to not only set her back but also other female directors.
In addition to that, had she made Thor: The Dark World, her take on Wonder Woman wouldn’t have happened. In the aforementioned interview with Uproxx, Jenkins said she doesn’t think she would have been in the running for Wonder Woman had she directed Thor 2, and that’s one of the reasons she’s happy she didn’t do it. Thor’s second film happened fairly early in the MCU, and things were very different back then. It has been reported that Ike Perlmutter wanted primarily male characters in Marvel films in order to boost toy sales, which is why many stories couldn’t have a female villain. With that in mind, along with the idea the studio had for the film and what Jenkins said about doing something she didn’t believe in, Thor: The Dark World still wouldn't have been a memorable film, and the one who would have had to deal with the consequences would have been Jenkins. The reaction to a not-good Marvel film directed by a woman would have had a much bigger negative impact than a not-good Marvel film with a male director (which is what happened, in the end).
Supposing Marvel agreed to Jenkins’ idea and Thor 2 would have gone on a Shakespearean route, the MCU probably wouldn’t have had Taika Waititi’s version of the God of Thunder. Thor: Ragnarok marked a much needed fresh start for Thor after what Taylor did in Thor: The Dark World, with Waititi giving the Asgardian Avenger a personality, sense of humor, and seizing Chris Hemsworth’s comedic talents, while also building a story that was different to the rest of the MCU – and with a bigger female presence, thanks to Hela and Valkyrie. In the end, Jenkins’ departure was for the better, not only for her career but also for Marvel, as without Thor: Ragnarok there wouldn’t be Thor: Love and Thunder and Thor’s role in the final Avengers films would have been very different.