Is this going to be live action?

There are already several Thor and Avengers animated films.

Thass duh plannnnn mannnnnn! ;^)

Kenneth Branagh's Shakespearean movies are brilliant. His other movies tend to be ridiculously over-the-top spectacles such as Frankenstein which is almost unwatchable.

"Is this going to be live action?"

Well, yeah. Iron Man and Hulk were live action. Thor and Captain America will be live action, as will Avengers.

BRANAGH SUCKS. He will choose a lame cw actor just because he's blond and pretty.
You wanna do some good hot great movies?
Paul walker as Thor.
Josh Hartnett as Locki, he really wants to do it.
And big Vin Diesel as Odin.

Vin Diesel as Odin? Everybody's free to have their own opinion, but in my opinion, that would be awful.

I think Branagh is a good choice. I agree that his Shakespeare movies are great. I disagree about Frankenstein, though. I thought he did a great job of capturing the feel of the original novel. He greatly departed from previous films, true; but he made by far the best film version of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, which if I recall was the name of the movie:) Compare it to the book and remember when and by whom it was written, not the other movies, which were VERY loosely based on the book.

The first rumors had Rome's Kevin McKidd as Thor - I thought that would have been pretty cool. But I haven't heard anything on that front in a while. Has Ray Stevenson's Punisher bomb made the Rome cast uncool, now?

Anyway, who cares about any of this? When is the Beta Ray Bill movie coming?

Oh, and if any movie deserves to be "over the top", it is Thor. He is a Norse GOD after all and as bigger than life flamboyant as they come.

Go for a real Scandinavian. Alexander Skarsgard from Sweden who have done roles in both HBO series Generation kill and True blood is a potential candidate.

Kenneth Branagh has done Swedish detective series Wallander in Sweden. So his stay in Sweden can make him contemplate the choice for a Scandinavian actors for this part (far fetched, but you never know).

I hope Branagh doesn't do anything too far out there when working with such a weird and out of place comic character as Thor. Better to tone it down like Bryan Singer did with X-men.

Paul walker? Kevin mckidd? why would these skinny wiry bubble toothpicked arm guys be up for thor??!! Thor is massive! ..Larger than life! Hugly muscular! I hope they find someone that is at least built like him.

I believe movies based on mythology, even comic book versions of mythology should have universal casting since their stories have a universal appeal to them. Thor isn't just Scandinavian anymore than King Arthur is just British or Quetzalcoatl is just Aztec.
1.Arnold Schwarzenegger as Odin
2. Brent Spiner as Loki
3. Vladimir Kulich (Buliwyf in The 13th Warrior) as Thor

WWE's Triple H would be perfect as Thor...he already has a HAMMER of his own!

ah.. They must be progressive in casting this film-- Thor must be believable to be as strong as he is, but it must be a real actor, someone with the skills, not just a weightlifter.. Loki and Odin have more flexibility in terms of getting actors who are respected and excellent at their trade.. hopefully Patrick Stewart will get a role here..

Vladimir Kulich would be perfect! Great suggestion, Richard:) I think Kevin McKidd might be able to pull it off if he worked out a lot. He is actually a pretty big guy from what I've seen and could put on the muscle to make it believable, maybe. Although I still have to go with Kulcih as my first choice.

"Has Ray Stevenson's Punisher bomb made the Rome cast uncool, now?"

What an absurd question. Kevin McKidd hasn't stopped working for more than a second since then, and he's revitalised a dying Grey's Anatomy with one of the hottest on-tube romances with Sandra Oh. Ray himself just finished filming "Book of Eli" with Denzel Washington AND Gary Oldman. And now Ray Stevenson is to STAR in "Tribes of October" with supporting actors, Robert Duvall AND James Caan. I'd say that's doing pretty well.

I stand corrected, Nomad. That's what I get for mouthing off without doing any sort of what people call "research." But, hey, that's what the Internets are for.

Now, about that Beta Ray Bill movie...

1.Arnold Schwarzenegger as Odin

I don't know. I think at this point, when we see Arnold, we tend to see past the role he is playing and just view him as 'the Guvernator' now. He's been in too many public mishaps for me to be able to separate all of that from his performance as Odin. If Arnold were a stronger actor and could power his way past the public perception of his celebrity, I'd go with it.

Personally, I'd go for someone more authoritative and who can wield a commanding presence.

The guy I'd pick for this role, if I had my druthers, is Russel Crowe. In both Gladiator and Master And Commander, he showed poise and dominance in leadership positions and the abilty to be 'the man.' Odin has to be the be-all, end-all in Asgard.

Brian Blessed wouldn't be a bad choice, either.

2. Brent Spiner as Loki

I like this choice from a visual aspect but not necessarily from an acting perspective. I liked Brent Spiner...as Data. He's never really done anything outside of that to impress upon me that he could be the nemesis of the Odinson. I would want someone with more Thespian presence to play this role.

I personally would pick Jeremy Irons. Sure, he was unforgivably bad in Dungeons And Dragons, but think about all the great subdued roles he's played in the past. Loki is the whipped dog of Asgard, outwardly pretending to be an obedient malcontent but inwardly plotting and scheming at every turn to overthrow Asgard. Plus, he has the ability to be TRULY wicked and insidious whenever he wants to be, and for Loki to truly be the villain he's supposed to be, he has to convince others that he's not the real enemy and get others to play right into his hands. Jeremy Irons is an actor that can pull this off, IMO. And he'd look the part, too. Check the original Kirby designs for Loki if you don't believe me.

3. Vladimir Kulic

I liked 13th Warrior just fine, but I don't think this guy has enough presence or command to be the god of Thunder. Thor is the greatest hero of Norse mythology, its most powerful warrior, and the actor they pick has to be someone that brings that kind of physical presence to the role. I don't think this guy does that.

The choice of Triple H compels me solely because he possesses the look, build and athletecism to pull off the role. My only problem with it is the same problem everyone else is going to have with it: he's a professional wrestler. Now, don't get me wrong, I am a fan of pro wrestling and greatly respect everything the workers put themselves through for the delight of the crowd. But general moviegoing audiences don't regard pro wrestlers as respectable actors and this casting choice might drive people away from the movie or, worse, result in them not taking Thor seriously. The last thing you want is for audiences to disregard the title character, especially if its Thor.

But the problem remains: if you don't cast an athlete who has at least SOME acting capabilities (which Triple H does based on his career choice), Thor won't work. He has to be bigger than everyone else, more imposing than everyone else. Somebody that will put on that winged helmet and not ge laughed at when he does so. Arnold would have been that guy 25 years ago, but there isn't anyone like him right now. Personally, I'd have no problem with Triple H in the role but I know it'd hurt the general perception of the film. They'd be taking a huge chance if they did it.

One could argue that casting Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man was a similar risk, but I'd disagree. Downey Jr. had always been a talented, capable actor before landing the role of Tony Stark and everyone knew it. But during production, the feeling was there that it was a train wreck waiting to happen, sort of a general feel of 'things are going well...until Downey Jr. ends up in jail again.' Luckily, that didn't happen.

Triple H isn't quite the ticking bomb waiting to go off that Downey Jr. was thought to be. My fear with him is that he'll end up being more of a dud than an explosion.

Thor will be a tough cast, no matter how you look at it. If they go with a pro wrestler (again, personally I would have no issue with it), they are taking another chance. And the last thing you want to do is hurt the Thor IP with bad casting. The character is FINALLY back in respectable straights in the comics after far too many years of misuse and abuse by Marvel Comics. Let's let the guy recover to his full stature that he so richly deserves, shall we?

Branagh will cast himself as Donald Blake, just a gut feeling.

Alex has a weak jaw and Thor needs to be able to take a punch (I'm a Swede I can say that).

A prowrestler is a gamble that would likely fail... Vlad rocks, but he's too old.

I think you need someone whose tall, got a great build (and could put on a few more for bulk), in his 30's, and looks like a scrapper (tough), and can hang with Robert Downey and Sam Jackson.

I think Paul Walker could do it... if not Thor, then Captain America.

Take a look at Brad Pitt as Achilles. He could do Thor. Branaugh would make a great Fandral!