More 'Thor': Idris Elba Guards the Bridge To Asgard
Filed under: Action, Casting, Paramount, Newsstand, Comic/Superhero/Geek
Asgard has just added another brilliant actor to their semi-immortal ranks. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Idris Elba has joined the cast of Thor as Heimdall, guardian of the Bifrost Bridge. He's the man you have to pass if you hope to start some stuff in Asgard, and as he's all-seeing and all-knowing, good luck trying to kick his butt.Elba's casting is undoubtedly going to cause a bit of a stir, as the Heimdall of the Marvel comics is a redhaired Caucasian. In the original Nordic myths, he was even called "the whitest of the gods" which seems like a thousand tasteless jokes in the making. (For the record, "whitest" refers to the light he emanated, not his skin color.) I imagine a lot of people are going to make those jokes, complain about things being PC, and just be very unpleasant.
But you know what? The Asgardians are gods. They can be any color they want, and should be. Marvel's Thor is also distinctly different than the original Norse myths, and I think a diverse cast is a fantastic and appropriate idea. Plus, this is Idris Elba. He's the kind of badass you want on that Bifrost Bridge, guarding the city gates, and having throwdowns with Thor. (He's always trying to prevent everyone's favorite blonde from going in or out of Asgard.) Kudos to Kenneth Branagh for recognizing that, and for creating an Ultimate Heimdall in the course of pre-production.










Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
11-20-2009 @ 11:14AM
Kevin said...
I totally agree, but I get the feeling that the same people who were outraged when white actors were cast to play asian or african american roles are going to be totally fine with this.
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11-20-2009 @ 12:06PM
filmsuki said...
Replacing white characters with ethnic minorities is perfectly acceptable and encouraged since it's politically correct and promotes racial diversity. Didn't you get the memo? :)
11-20-2009 @ 12:47PM
Gordon said...
Because it's IDRIS ELBA. :)
11-20-2009 @ 1:05PM
Cyhort said...
Meh, this doesn't bother me really. I don't usually mind changing the race of minor characters (Heimdall) little known characters (Blade) or characters who already had a race change in the comics to turn the character into Samuel L Jackson (Nick Fury). What bothers me are things like the rumors about Captain America possibly being played by Will Smith. Cap is an A-list comic character and he's ALWAYS been white, blond haired and blue eyed. I'd be pissed if they changed his hair color let alone his entire race and the same thing goes for every other popular superhero.
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11-20-2009 @ 1:42PM
Claire said...
to be perfectly frank, I think there is still alot of racism in our media, and when minority actors are cast for roles that are traditionally, but not required, white it's better for everyone. As in the case of the Black Green Lantern in the animated Justice League or Wesley Snipe's Blade. And when characters who are non-white are cast with white actors, I do wonder. One has to ask why more than half the cast of The Last Airbender is white and why the main actors of Dragonball were white as well. Because no matter how much people bitch about racial diversity and PC, there is still an undeniable problem with the fact that most actors (main, secondary, and extra) on screen in Hollywood are white.
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11-20-2009 @ 1:59PM
Yossarian said...
Will Smith AS Cap'n America? The whole twist of Cap fighting the Nazis was that he resembled the Nazi ideal as blond and blue eyed. Cap is supposed to be the fairytale "America." Its part of what makes him a conflicted character.
Im a big fan of Thor in Marvel and mythology and would like to see Idris as Heimdall because he can bring alot to that character.
I realize this is the nerdiest post of all time. I win?
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11-20-2009 @ 2:23PM
Tom Strong said...
Makes no sense! There were no African-Norwegians in ancient Norway, and they didn't worship any either. This casting is biologically, historically, and logically impossible.
Would a black King Arthur make sense in the dark ages? Nope. Would casting Grace Park as Heimdall make sense? An asian woman? Nope.
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11-21-2009 @ 7:47AM
mega said...
first of it is not set in Norway its set in a different world Asgard. plus i bet you never complain about Avatar: The Last Airbender, Dragonball, King of Fighters casting of white actors as the lead.
11-20-2009 @ 3:13PM
Christopher said...
Big fan of the comics and Norse stuff in general, and honestly, it's a movie based on a comic book based on an old religion. Artistic license happens all the time. As long as the movie is good, this casting of a side character being different historically or in the comic version is an insignificant concern.
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11-23-2009 @ 5:42PM
tony said...
Kenneth Branagh always cast a black actor in his film that is based/influence on William Shakespeare, Shakespearean story. Marvel Thor has alot of Shakespearean influence Kenneth Branagh casting Idris Elba should not be a shocker cause he does cast black actors in this type of movie i.e.
"Much Ado About Nothing" had Denzel Washington
"Love's Labours Lost" had Carmen Ejogo and Adrian Lester
"As You Like It" had David Oyelowo
also whats funny is that i notice alot of white people never complain when white actors play asian character or another ethnic characters. i.e.
The Last Airbender - Noah Ringer as Aang
Dragonball - Justin Chatwin as Goku
King of Fighters - Sean Faris playing Kyo Kusanagi a japanese character
21 - Jim Sturgess the movie is based on Asian MIT students
A Mighty Heart - Angelina Jolie played Mariane Pear a black womanl
The Weapon - David Henrie going to play Tommy Zhou
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11-27-2009 @ 4:14PM
Earl said...
I've seen a few mentions of Blade's race being changed for the movies and I'd like to point out that Blade has always been a black male in the comics. Wesley Snipes playing him was not a race change. His nationality is another thing, as he is British in the comics.
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