It stars Chris Hemsworth as Thor alongside Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Stellan Skarsgård, Idris Elba, Christopher Eccleston, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Kat Dennings, Ray Stevenson, Zachary Levi, Tadanobu Asano, Jaimie Alexander, Rene Russo, and Anthony Hopkins.

Development of a sequel to Thor began in April 2011 when producer Kevin Feige announced plans for it to follow the MCU crossover film The Avengers (2012).

Thor: The Dark World premiered at the Odeon Leicester Square in London on October 22, 2013, and was released in the United States on November 8, as part of Phase Two of the MCU.

In a mid-credits scene, Volstagg and Sif visit the Collector and entrust the Aether to his care; with the Tesseract already in Asgard, they fear that having two Infinity Stones so close together would be dangerous.

[59] Feige later explained that Marvel Studios would gauge how well Thor did at the box office before announcing sequels, but stated, "Don Payne is working on story ideas for a part two.

[60] In June 2011, Walt Disney Studios set a July 26, 2013, release date for the Thor sequel with Chris Hemsworth reprising his role as the title hero.

[6] The Los Angeles Times cited the long commitment necessary for a special effects-heavy epic and the pressure to start the script process right away as reasons for Branagh's departure, although he was initially enthused by the chance to direct the sequel.

Jenkins had intended to create a film based on the premise of Romeo and Juliet, where Jane was stuck on Earth with Thor forbidden to come save her.

[73] Feige mentioned Taylor's work on the series Mad Men (2007–2015), Boardwalk Empire (2010–2014) and Game of Thrones as reasons for his hiring, saying "With Alan's direction we got a few more layers of patina, of texture, of reality into our golden realm.

[74] By January 10, Marvel Studios had commissioned screenwriter Rodat to rewrite the sequel and Hiddleston stated that filming was expected to begin in London in the summer of 2012.

[77][78] Hemsworth also revealed that the film would have a more Viking-influenced feel, elaborating "I think the science fiction element to Thor ... the danger is it falls a little bit into the world of it's 'tough to throw a light to.'

[81] By June 2012, much of the first film's supporting cast was confirmed to return, including Idris Elba,[23] Jaimie Alexander,[39] Ray Stevenson[33] and Stellan Skarsgård.

[86][87] In August of that year, Christopher Eccleston entered final negotiations to play Malekith,[25] and the film was scheduled to shoot in Iceland, where Taylor shot parts of Game of Thrones.

[93] Markus and McFeely said Feige had approached them in between writing drafts for Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014) to work on the Dark World script.

[106] Loki was originally intended to die in the film, however, after test audiences did not believe he was actually dead, Marvel Studios decided to alter the character's ending.

Double Negative visual effects supervisor Alex Wuttke said, "The benefit of that is that you have some real-world terrain to work with – so you have buildings that have to convey natural features.

"[110] For scenes taking place on Svartalfheim, production filmed in Iceland with Double Negative adding ruins, mountains, Dark Elf ships, and skies.

Visual effects supervisor Jake Morrison said, "We ended up calling this 'time toffee', so as you punch through from one realm to another it's almost like cling film or a slightly gelatinous membrane you have to pass through.

[117] In March 2013, Marvel announced the release of a two-issue comic book prelude by writers Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost and artist Scot Eaton in June 2013.

"[125] The Los Angeles Times said, that the trailer suggests "an ominous, epic scale for the sequel" and that "the collaboration between Thor and Loki promises to be especially interesting.

"[18] Later in the month, producer Kevin Feige and cast members Tom Hiddleston, Natalie Portman and Anthony Hopkins presented additional footage at Disney's D23 Expo.

[154] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an "A−" average, based on a grading scale ranging from A+ to F.[155] Ben Child of The Guardian said, "Thanks to Hiddleston and Hemsworth's impressive collective charisma, Thor: The Dark World is far from a franchise killer.

"[156] Justin Chang of Variety wrote, "This robust, impersonal visual-effects showpiece proves buoyant and unpretentious enough to offset its stew of otherwise derivative fantasy/action elements.

[158] Simon Abrams, writing for RogerEbert.com said, "There's just enough tension and humor in Thor: The Dark World to make the film's otherwise listless proceedings worth watching, but only just.

"[159] Conversely, Tim Robey of The Daily Telegraph said, "It feels entirely made by committee—the definition of house style, without a personal stamp in sight.

"[160] Leslie Felperin of The Hollywood Reporter said, "Although director Alan Taylor manages to get things going properly for the final battle in London, the long stretches before that on Asgard and the other branches of Yggdrasil are a drag, like filler episodes of Game of Thrones but without the narrative complexity, mythical heft or all-pervading sexiness.

"[161] Michael Phillips of the Los Angeles Times described Thor: The Dark World as having the "same old threats of galaxy annihilation spiced with fairly entertaining fish-out-of-water jokes".

[163] Taylor expressed dissatisfaction with the finished film and blamed its mixed reception on changes Marvel Studios made during post-production, which he felt conflicted with his creative vision.

[184][185] Cate Blanchett, Tessa Thompson, Jeff Goldblum and Karl Urban join the cast as Hela, Valkyrie, Grandmaster, and Skurge, respectively.

[190] Additionally, Chris Pratt, Pom Klementieff, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, and Sean Gunn reprise their roles as Guardians of the Galaxy members Peter Quill / Star-Lord, Mantis, Drax the Destroyer, Nebula, Groot, Rocket, and Kraglin Obfonteri.