Kenneth Branagh won’t direct Thor 2

Disney has revealed that a sequel to Marvel’s Thor will hit cinemas on July 26, 2013. Although news of a sequel to the box office hit is hardly news at all, a surprising development regarding the first film’s director Kenneth Branagh certainly is…

He isn’t coming back for Thor 2! According to Deadline, star Chris Hemsworth will return to play the eponymous hero, but his helmer Branagh will not sit in the director’s chair. The separation was apparently “mutual and amicable”, and he will likely stay on as producer.

Jon Favreau famously abandoned his post as director of Iron Man 3 earlier in the year, allowing Shane Black to step in. Iron Man 3 will also arrive in cinemas in May 2013, a mere two months earlier than Thor 2.

Before then, we have Joss Whedon’s The Avengers set for a mid-2012 release.

Discuss: So, we know Iron Man and Thor will at least survive whatever dramas ensue in The Avengers (like that was in any doubt).