User:Boycool42/Erik Selvig

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Erik Selvig
Publication information
PublisherMarvel Comics
First appearanceThor (April 21, 2011)
Created by
In-story information
Team affiliationsS.H.I.E.L.D.
Supporting character of

Erik Selvig, Ph.D. is a fictional character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which crosses over several Marvel Studios superhero films. Selvig first appeared as the mentor of Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) in Kenneth Branagh's 2011 film Thor, where he was portrayed by Swedish actor Stellan Skarsgård. Skarsgård is also reported to star as Selvig in Joss Whedon's 2012 film The Avengers.

Appearances[edit]

Thor[edit]

In Thor, Odin (Anthony Hopkins), the king of Asgard, punishes his disobedient son Thor (Chris Hemsworth) by stripping him of his godly power and exiling him to Earth as a mortal, accompanied by his hammer Mjolnir — the source of his power, now protected by an enchantment to allow only the worthy to wield it. Thor lands in New Mexico, where astrophysicist Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), her assistant Darcy Lewis (Kat Dennings), and mentor Dr. Erik Selvig are researching a dimensional anomaly. While Jane and Darcy do not initially believe the things Thor tells them about his identity, Selvig recognizes them as the stories he heard as a child.

Meanwhile, the local populace finds Mjolnir, which S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg) soon commandeers before forcibly acquiring Jane's data about the Bifröst, the wormhole that delivered Thor to Earth. Selvig explains to Jane the danger of opposing S.H.I.E.L.D., citing the story of one of his acquaintances: Bruce Banner, a pioneer in gamma radiation who disappeared after confronting the government in Louis Leterrier's 2008 film The Incredible Hulk. Thor, having discovered Mjolnir's nearby location, seeks to retrieve it from the facility that S.H.I.E.L.D. quickly constructed but he finds himself unable to lift the hammer, and is captured. With Selvig's help, Thor is freed and resigns himself to exile on Earth, disobeying Selvig's order not to become romantically involved with Jane.

Later, when Thor's brother and newly self-appointed king Loki (Tom Hiddleston) sends the Destroyer, a seemingly indestructible automaton, to kill Thor, Thor sacrifices himself to save the lives of his old and new friends. However, this sacrifices proves Thor worthy to wield Mjolnir, restoring his powers. This enables him to defeat the Destroyer, return to Asgard, and stop Loki, ultimately resulting in Loki falling into an abyss and Odin returning to power. On Earth, Jane and her team search for a way to open a portal to Asgard.

In a post-credits scene directed by The Avengers director Joss Whedon, Selvig has been taken to a S.H.I.E.L.D. facility, where S.H.I.E.L.D. leader Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) asks him to study a glowing cube-shaped device, which Fury says may hold limited power. An invisible Loki whispers to Selvig to agree, which he does.

The Avengers[edit]

Skarsgård reprise his role as Selvig in Joss Whedon's 2012 film The Avengers.[1] He, along with Clint Barton and other S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, is telepathically manipulated by Loki. He uses the Tesseract to transport the Chitauri to New York City. However, he is freed from Loki's control and informs Black Widow that the portal can be disabled with Loki's spear.

Development[edit]

Stellan Skarsgård (pictured) chose to appear in Thor to have a unique experience in film.[2]

Stellan Skarsgård's casting in Thor was confirmed on October 5, 2009.[3][4] Skarsgård stated that he was not initially familiar with Thor.[5] As to why he took the part, Skarsgård remarked, I "chose Thor because of [director] Kenneth Branagh. The script was nice and we got to rehearse and talk to the writers and do some collaborating in the process to make it fit us. So I had a very happy time on it. What I always try to do is immediately do something I just haven't done so I get variation in my life. I've made about 90 films and if I did the same thing over and over again I would be bored by now. I try to pick different films, I go and do those big ones and having done that I can usually afford to go and do some really small obscure films and experiment a little".[2]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Stellan Skarsgård klar för ny superhjältefilm". Expressen (in Swedish). March 3, 2011. Archived from the original on 2011-07-05. Retrieved August 6, 2011. The Avengers is the dream team of superheroes, a group consisting of among others Iron Man, the Hulk, Captain America and Thor. The film is planned to premier in 3D in May of next year. Stellan Skarsgård confirms to TT Spektra that he will play the same role as in the upcoming Thor: Doctor Selvig. Not much is yet known about the character apart from that Selvig is a scientist in New Mexico.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
  2. ^ a b Cheney, Alexandra (December 29, 2010). "Stellan Skarsgard on 'Thor,' 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo,' and Swedish Films". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on July 4, 2011. Retrieved August 6, 2011.
  3. ^ Rappe, Elisabeth (October 5, 2009). "Stellan Skarsgard Joins 'Thor'". Cinematical. Retrieved August 6, 2011.
  4. ^ Rappe, Elisabeth (February 23, 2011). "Exclusive: Screenwriter Don Payne Talks Thor!". CHUD.com. Retrieved August 6, 2011.. WebCitation archive.
  5. ^ Raddish, Christina (December 29, 2010). "Stellan Skarsgard Exclusive Interview; Talks 'Thor,' 'Melancholia,' and David Fincher's 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo'". Collider. Archived from the original on 2011-07-04. Retrieved August 6, 2011.

External links[edit]

Professor Erik Selvig at IMDb

Category:Marvel Comics characters Category:Film characters Category:Fictional physicists Category:Fictional characters introduced in 2011