FROM SPLASH PAGE: Last week, I talked to one of comics greatest living legends, Stan Lee, about his arrival on the Twitter scene and why it makes him feel like he's writing his "Stan's Soapbox" column again. While Lee had some fun stuff to say about the world of micro-blogging, I also had to ask him about a few other things on comics fans' minds these days — namely, whether he'll be making the expected cameos in future Marvel movies.

"I had lunch with Branagh, [who's] the nicest guy in the world as well as the most talented," Lee told MTV News when asked if he's been contacted about a "Thor" cameo yet. "Months ago, when he was first starting on the movie, he said he would get a cameo for me."

Continue reading EXCLUSIVE: Stan Lee On His 'Thor' Cameo And Meeting With Kenneth Branagh

FROM SPLASH PAGE: During a panel at last weekend’s Baltimore Comic-Con, "New Avengers" writer Brian Michael Bendis fielded some questions about the upcoming slate of Marvel movies and offered a ringing endorsement of the script for Kenneth Branagh's upcoming "Thor" movie.

"I was reading the new script just last night," Bendis told fans, according to a ComicBookResources report on the event. "[It was] very, very good."

Bendis’ comments came shortly after a G4 interview in which he stated that the "Thor" movie would be the surprise hit out of all of the upcoming Marvel movies. Bendis reiterated his description of Branagh’s vision for “Thor” as “Shakespearean.”

Continue reading Brian Bendis Says 'Thor' Script Is 'Very, Very Good'

FROM SPLASH PAGE: While the world still waits for official confirmation that Chris Hemsworth will play the lead role in “Thor,” one other aspect of the project that remains uncertain is, well… exactly what sort of “Thor” story the movie will tell.

Back in January, a rumor made the rounds that the character of Thor’s human alter ego, Donald Blake, had been added to the “Thor” script, causing many sites (including this one) to surmise that the story would be grounded on Earth a bit rather than primarily taking place in Asgard. In an exclusive interview with “Thor” director Kenneth Branagh, we asked the celebrated filmmaker what Thor stories are inspiring his approach to the movie — and the comic book creators who are counseling him on all things Thunder God.

Continue reading EXCLUSIVE: Kenneth Branagh Addresses The Stories & People Inspiring The ‘Thor’ Movie

Kurt Wallander is not your typical police detective. At least not in the way American television audiences have come to know most of those crime-fighting professionals. His flaws are more than mere sanitized contrivances, unlike the flaws of so many sleuths on shows like "The Mentalist" and "Without a Trace". Maybe that has to do with the fact that Wallander is a fictional creation of a best-selling Swedish novelist.

And when portrayed by the venerable actor Kenneth Branagh in a three-part PBS mini-series debuting on Sunday, May 10, those imperfections—a dark existential burden, diabetes, a hair-trigger temper—leave the distinct impression that American viewers have been missing out on something crucial. Read more...

FROM SPLASH PAGE: Could acclaimed actor/director Kenneth Branagh be officially on board to direct "Thor?" According to a recent post on WhatsOnStage.com -- a British website that covers theatre and performing arts -- that just might be the case.

While there has been no official word from Marvel Studios or Branagh's reps, WhatsOnStage reports that Branagh will be stepping down from directorial duties on a stage production of "Hamlet" (starring Jude Law) "because of commitments to the forthcoming feature film 'Thor,' a project he’s recently undertaken." The story notes that Branagh will continue as an "artistic associate" for the current theatre season.

For more about why this might mean an official announcement soon about Kenneth Branagh directing "Thor", check out SplashPage.MTV.com!

FROM SPLASH PAGE: With the internet absolutely a’blaze over the recent announcement that Kenneth Branagh could possibly be the director on Marvel’s upcoming “Thor” film, Splash Page decided to get current “Thor” comics writer J. Michael Straczynski’s take on the news.

“Honestly, I can’t imagine anyone better suited to this,” said Straczynski, who is more widely known as the creator of “Babylon 5” and more recently, the screenwriter of the upcoming Clint Eastwood-directed Oscar contender “Changeling.” "'Thor,' at his best, has always had a classical bent to the character in terms of his history, the way he speaks, and the often Shakespearean intrigues and dramas that surround him." Read More...