Marvel has released the first trailer for director Alan Taylor’s (Game of Thrones) sequel Thor: The Dark World and it looks great.  Like every well cut trailer, it showcases a ton of impressive looking action, while revealing new details about the story.  I especially liked the reveal of how Loki (Tom Hiddleston) will be involved in the sequel.   If you dug the first Thor, you’re going to love this trailer.  Hit the jump to watch and let me know what you think in the comments.  

Thor: The Dark World stars Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Christopher Eccleston,Stellan Skarsgård, Idris Elba, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Kat Dennings, Ray Stevenson, Zachary Levi, Tadanobu Asano, Jaimie Alexander, Rene Russo, and Anthony Hopkins.  Thor: The Dark World opens in 3D on November 8th.

Universal’s 3D samurai tentpole 47 Ronin has had a bit of a troubled road through production and post-production, but if all goes according to plan, we’ll be seeing Keanu Reeeves wielding his sword in theaters this coming December.  In anticipation of the pic, some promo posters have gone online that feature the cast doing their best samurai poses.  Reeves stars as one of the 18th century samurai who seek to avenge their master’s death, lending some starpower to the movie.  I don’t imagine we’ll see a trailer until closer to this summer, but these promo posters offer a nice tease of what’s to come.

Hit the jump to check out the promo posters.  Directed by Carl Rinsch, the film also stars Hiroyuki Sanada, Tadanobu Asano, Kô Shibasaki, and Rinko Kikuchi.  47 Ronin opens in 3D this Christmas. [Update: The images have been removed at the studio's request.  Sorry if you missed them!]

Though Phase One of Marvel Studios’ film slate came to an end just a few months ago with The Avengers, production on Phase Two is already well underway.  The studio is currently in the midst of filming two upcoming sequels at the same time: Iron Man 3 and Thor: The Dark World.  The Iron Man production is winding down to a close ahead of that film’s May 2013 release date, but filming on Thor: The Dark World is still going strong in London and today the first official synopsis for the Asgardian pic has been revealed.

The logline essentially tells us what we already know: Thor (Chris Hemsworth) must fight against Maleketih (Christopher Eccleston) and his race of Dark Elves, Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) is back, the fate of the universe is in the balance, etc.  However, the synopsis does tease the film’s epic scope and the fact that Thor is forced to “sacrifice everything” in order to save us all (Thor dies?!).  Hit the jump to check out the full synopsis, which includes the full cast list.  Directed by Alan Taylor, Thor: The Dark World opens on November 8th, 2013.

Not all of the Warriors Three will be returning for Thor 2.  While Volstagg (Ray Stevenson) and Hogun (Tadanobu Asano) will be reprising their roles as two of the warriors from Thor, Fandral (Josh Dallas) apparently will not.  Dallas’ prior commitments to the ABC series, Once Upon a Time, will prevent him from joining the sequel.  So reports have it that Marvel is looking to ex-secret agent super-spy, Zachary Levi (Chuck) to fill the role.  Hit the jump for more.

Can director Carl Erik Rinsch balance a fantastic epic featuring giants and witches with one of Japan’s legendary tale of loyalty and sacrifice?  That’s the question circling 47 Ronin but star Keanu Reeves explains how the film plans to honor the Japanese people who have grown up hearing this tale while still creating a widely-accessible tentpole flick.  Says Reeves,

“Japanese kids grow up with this story told to them. They hear it from family and they learn it in school, it’s part of the culture.  It’s been made into movies many times and on television. It’s like our westerns, the story keeps being told.  It’s been reworked in some ways [for this new film] but with great care and respect.”

Hit the jump for more details on the project including a synopsis.  The film also features Japanese stars Hiroyuki Sanada, Tadanobu Asano, Kô Shibasaki, and Rinko Kikuchi.  47 Ronin is set to open in 3D on November 11, 2012.

Marvel’s Thor is the toughest of the lead Avengers to bring to the big screen.  He’s a cross between a space alien and a Norse god, he wields a hammer named Mjolnir instead of standard superhero weapons like guns or swords, and he wears a cape.  The character could fall so easily into camp territory, but director Kenneth Branagh takes the bold approach of playing the character completely straight but still keeps the movie fun and light.  This balance of broad comedy and bombastic action mixed with straight-faced drama comes from the perfect combination of lead actors Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston.  While the film does have some problems in developing the supporting characters, its biggest sin is in the 3D post-conversion which turns the bright shining lights of Asgard into a dim, blurry mess.  But if you catch the film in 2D, Thor is going to be some of the most fun you have in a theater this year.

With Thor finally arriving in America next weekend (it’s already playing around the world), Paramount/Marvel have released the EPK and included are four clips and ten minutes of behind the scenes footage.  While the clips have all been previously released, this is the first time we have all four in one place.  In addition, if you’re curious what it’s really like on a movie set, the behind the scenes footage is great to watch.  However, if you are trying to avoid spoilers, you might want to check it out after you’ve seen the movie.

As I said when I posted my review/video blog on Thor, I thought the movie was great.  Also, while Thor is not an easy transition from comic books to movie screens, director Kenneth Branagh made it work and I cannot wait to see everyone together in The Avengers next summer.  Hit the jump to watch the clips and look for new interviews next week.  Thor stars Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Anthony Hopkins, Rene Russo, Stellan Skarsgard, Jaimie Alexander, Kat Dennings, Ray Stevenson, Josh Dallas, Tadanobu Asano, Idris Elba, Clark Gregg and Colm Feore.

With only eight days left until the release of Kenneth Branagh’s Thor, Marvel is pushing hard on the film’s marketing.  Despite taking the opening weekend of May (traditionally seen as the current first week of the summer movie season, although Fast Five may as well open it this Friday), the film is a tough sell as it blends fantasy and real-world elements around a character who sits on the second tier of Marvel’s superheroes.

Among the new marketing that’s been released is a Japanese trailer that gives a fair amount of screen-time to Hogun who is played by Tadanobu Asano (Asano just happens to be the only major Japanese star in the film).  There’s also a featurette centering on Natalie Portman’s character, Jane Foster.  Finally, Jaimie Alexander—who plays Asgardian warrior Sif—went on Jimmy Kimmel Live to show off a clip from the film.  Hit the jump for the Japanese trailer, clip and featurette.  Thor opens in 3D on May 6th.

Marvel has released some more new images from Kenneth Branagh’s Thor.  Among the new images we have a good look at Rene Russo as Frigga as well as a nice photo of the Warriors Three (Tadanobu Asano, Josh Dallas, and Ray Stevenson).

Hit the jump to check out the new images.  Thor stars Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Anthony Hopkins, Stellan Skarsgard, Jaimie Alexander, Kat Dennings, Idris Elba, Clark Gregg, and Colm Feore.  It opens in 3D on May 6th.

If you’re hard-up for new Thor footage, then you’ll want to check out the new French trailer for the film.  It has a whopping three or maybe even four seconds of stuff that wasn’t in the teaser trailer or theatrical trailer.  Plus, you get to hear all of the actors re-dubbed in French!  Magnifique!

Hit the jump to check out the trailer.  Thor stars Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Rene Russo, Idris Elba, Kat Dennings, Clark Gregg, Jaimie Alexander, Ray Stevenson, Joshua Dallas, Tadanobu Asano, and Anthony Hopkins. The film opens in 3D in France on April 27th and in the U.S. on May 6th.

Four Japanese actors have joined Keanu Reeves in Carl Erik Rinsch’s 47 Ronin. Hiroyuki Sanada (Lost), Kou Shibasaki (Battle Royale), Tadanobu Asano (Mongol), and Rinko Kikuchi (Babel) will star alongside Reeves in Rinsch’s adaptation of the Japanese legend of ronin who fought to avenge their master’s death.  The film, which Universal is setting up as one of its 2012 tentpoles, is set to be released in 3D on November 11, 2012.

Variety doesn’t say which roles the new cast members will be playing.  However, judging by the previous work I’ve seen from these actors, I’m become more excited for what 47 Ronin holds in store. [Update: Universal has sent us a press release detailing the roles the lead actors will be playing.  Hit the jump to check it out.]

Marvel has released a new trailer for Thor.  Some of the stuff I love, especially the look of Asgard and Thor (Chris Hemsworth) chucking Mjolner in to the face of a frost giant. But then there’s other stuff that makes the scale of the picture look dinky. Watching Destroyer (the metal, fire-faced guy) blow up the local Piggly-Wiggly doesn’t seem to fit with the epic tone director Kenneth Branagh seems to want. And as for the humor, it’s also a mixed bag. I chuckled at Thor smashing a coffee cup and demanding more of the delicious beverage, but then Kat Dennings’ joke about putting him on Facebook feels tired. I want Thor to be good, but I’m currently more optimistic about Marvel’s other big flick this summer, Captain America: The First Avenger.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer.  You can also click here to see the first trailer and here to see the Super Bowl spot.  Thor stars Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Rene Russo, Idris Elba, Kat Dennings, Clark Gregg, Jaimie Alexander, Ray Stevenson, Joshua Dallas, Tadanobu Asano, and Anthony Hopkins. It opens in 3D on May 6, 2011.

On top of the awesome commercial for Captain America: The First Avenger which features the first footage from the movie, Paramount/Marvel aired a spot for Thor during the Super Bowl which features a bit more footage than what we’ve all seen in the trailer.  If you wanted to see more of Thor’s romantic interest, Jane Foster, played by Natalie Portman, you’ll be happy.  In addition, you can get a tiny glimpse of Kat Dennings.  Otherwise it’s a lot of stuff you’ve already seen.  Hit the jump to check it out.

Thanks to Paramount/Marvel releasing the first official trailer (the leaked one from Comic-Con doesn’t count) for Thor, we’ve got a ton of new images to look at!  Granted they’re taken from the trailer, but so much is happening in the two minutes that I decided to screengrab 30 single images so you could see a bit more of what’s going on.

I will say after visiting the set earlier this year (watch my video blog here), the trailer reveals a tremendous amount that the casual fan won’t notice.  But if you watched my recap of the set visit and heard me talk about what I saw and learned, you might notice some of those huge moments.  I’ll tease you by saying Marvel does a great job editing certain things so you can’t tell you’re watching scenes from the finale cut to scenes happening much earlier in the film.  If you check out the images, you’ll see shots of the big battle between Loki and Thor….as well as why Thor is sent to Earth and so much more!  After you see the movie next year, watch this trailer again and you won’t believe how much Marvel revealed.  Hit the jump for the images:

The trailer for Kenneth Branagh’s Thor has gone online. It’s comprised mostly of the footage that was shown at Comic-Con (and later leaked online), but I think this trailer is better cut together. It’s clear that they’ve done some nifty effects work in the past five months, and I think this is a solid first trailer that will get people interested. It’s worth nothing that I’ve never been one of the people that think the costumes or sets look cheesy. I dig the aesthetic they’re going for and it feels like it will be a fresh spin on the superhero genre.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer.  Thor stars Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Rene Russo, Idris Elba, Kat Dennings, Clark Gregg, Jaimie Alexander, Ray Stevenson, Joshua Dallas, Tadanobu Asano, and Anthony Hopkins. It opens in 3D on May 6, 2011.