Deadline bring word that Natalie Portman has put pen to paper on her first two movie roles since winning the Best Actress Oscar for Darren Aronofsky’s ‘Black Swan’ and taking maternity leave. Portman has reportedly signed up to join Terrence Malick’s next two films, ‘Lawless’ and ‘Knight Of Cups.’ These two films will presumably follow Malick’s untitled romantic drama which is currently in post-production, that films stars Ben Affleck, Olga Kurylenko, Javier Bardem, Barry Pepper, Rachel McAdams, and Rachel Weisz.

‘Lawless’ will also star Ryan Gosling (Drive, The Ides of March) and boasts a supporting cast that includes Academy Award Winners Christian Bale (The Dark Knight, The Flowers of War), Cate Blanchett (The Hobbit, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) plus Rooney Mara (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The Social Network) and Haley Bennett (Marley & Me, The Haunting of Molly Hartley). The second film, ‘Knight Of Cups,’ will star Christian Bale with a supporting cast including Cate Blanchett and Isabel Lucas (Immortals, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen). Both films are currently in pre-production and will shoot back-to-back in 2012. Since Malick’s debut film ‘Badlands’ in 1973, the acclaimed filmmaker has only made four other films, ‘Days Of Heaven,’ ‘The Thin Red Line,’ ‘The New World,’ and this years ‘The Tree of Life’ - which won the Palme d’Or at Cannes and is nominated for Best Picture and Best Director Oscars. Expect more details regarding Malick’s forthcoming films soon.

Marvel presents the epic adventure, ‘Thor,’ which spans the Marvel Universe from present day Earth to the realm of Asgard. At the centre of the story is the mighty Thor (Chris Hemsworth), a powerful but arrogant warrior whose reckless actions reignite an ancient war. Thor is cast down to Earth by his father Odin (Anthony Hopkins) and is forced to live among humans. It’s while here on Earth that Thor learns what it takes to be a true hero when the most dangerous villain of his world sends the darkest forces of Asgard to invade Earth. Kenneth Branagh directs this fantasy epic which stars Chris Hemsworth as the ancient Norse god, Tom Hiddleston as his chaotic brother Loki, Natalie Portman as Jane Foster, a young woman who befriends Thor on Earth, and Anthony Hopkins as Odin, Thor’s father and king of Asgard. ‘Thor’ is available now on DVD and Blu-Ray in the US, and September 26th in the UK. Check out what Natalie Portman had to say about the film below.

What was it like stepping into something with such a huge fan base already ingrained?

Natalie Portman: I think one of the interesting things about the ’Thor’ comic books is that they were written over several decades, with several different writers and artists, so there’s very different stories, very different tones, very different artwork, very different places the characters go,  very different depictions of the characters. The challenge, more for the writers than for us even, but for the writers and for Kenneth Branagh as the director, is finding one tone, choosing which of the stories to tell because obviously all of these are sagas that have gone on for decades and whether to include certain characters or add others, which details to keep and which details to spare. It’s great to play characters that people are so passionate about already, to enter this universe where people are so devoted to these characters, it’s really lucky.

What was it about ‘Thor’ that initially sparked your interest?

Natalie Portman: To be honest I wasn’t really a big comic book fan growing up, I did get more into graphic novels when I did ‘V for Vendetta.’ When I started work on ‘Thor’ I went back and started reading as many comics as I could. I got into this when I knew Kenneth Branagh was directing, I just thought it was such an amazing idea, to have someone like him doing this kind of movie, it seemed like such an interesting and unexpected combination. It was such an interesting project, Kenneth was at the centre of that.

How was it working alongside Chris Hemsworth in this breakout role for him?

Natalie Portman: Chris Hemsworth is just so wonderful, he’s such a talented actor, he really worked hard to create this character. Even though it was one of his first big parts he was so confident without every being cocky, just a really good person. It was very easy and fun to work with him. He’s not showy or show-offy in any way, but he’s able to walk into a room with Kenneth Branagh and act his pants off and not be intimidated, and is able to shoulder this responsibility of taking on this huge character with incredible grace. He has his feet firmly planted the ground, such a kind guy and just a decent human being. He’s universally nice to everyone, genuinely nice, very funny. I have no doubt that he’ll be a massive star. It was fun to watch him work.

You’ve said how Kenneth Branagh was a key component for you joining this film, how was it actually working with him?

Natalie Portman: Ken was amazing, he’s so smart and so funny. It was really special to get to see how seriously you could take the acting in a movie that a lot of other directors might not pay attention to, in what was going on in the scenes. It was great seeing how that affected the final product – when you put that much energy as a director into these very specific relationships between the characters. He is such an incredible actor and director for actors, it was a very different experience too, just having someone give such attention to character and performance on a movie of this scale. Ken is a master, an absolute master. With a movie of this size, it’s very easy to get lost in needing to do special effects, cover all of this action. People often forget characters, so never for one second did he let that go, he was ALWAYS focused on that. And then between scenes he would tell us great funny stories and interesting titbits and anecdotes. We’d always learn something on set.

For Thor, Jane Foster is sort of the bridge to Earth and humility.

Natalie Portman: Oh yeah, I definitely think that’s part of her role in ‘Thor.’ It sort of grounds him. He’s exiled to earth to learn humility, I think her earthiness is part of, hopefully, what transforms him. There are definitely changes in the character from the comic books, but that is certainly one of the things that has stayed.

Throughout history, tales of chivalry have burnished the legends of brave, handsome knights who rescue fair damsels, slay dragons and conquer evil. But behind many a hero is a good-for-nothing younger brother trying just to stay out of the way of those dragons, evil and trouble in general. Danny McBride and James Franco team up for an epic comedy adventure set in a fantastical world—Your Highness. As two princes on a daring mission to save their land, they must rescue the heir apparent’s fiancée before their kingdom is destroyed.

Thadeous (McBride) has spent his life watching his perfect older brother Fabious (Franco) embark upon valiant journeys and win the hearts of his people. Tired of being passed over for adventure, adoration and the throne, he’s settled for a life of wizard’s weed, hard booze and easy maidens. But when Fabious’ bride-to-be, Belladonna (Zooey Deschanel), gets kidnapped by the evil wizard Leezar (Justin Theroux), the king gives his deadbeat son an ultimatum: Man up and help rescue her or get cut off. Half-assedly embarking upon his first quest, Thadeous joins Fabious to trek across the perilous outlands and free the princess. Joined by Isabel (Natalie Portman)—an elusive warrior with a dangerous agenda of her own—the brothers must vanquish horrific creatures and traitorous knights before they can reach Belladonna. If Thadeous can find his inner hero, he can help his brother prevent the destruction of his land. Stay a slacker, and not only does he die a coward, he gets front row seats to the dawn of an all-new Dark Ages. ‘Your Highness’ is out today on DVD and Blu-ray in the UK.

You were friendly with director David Gordon Green beforehand. Were you two looking to work together before ‘Your Highness‘?

Natalie Portman: A few years ago, we were talking about a few different projects and I really admired his films. I was excited by the idea of working with him. He called me and told me that he wanted me to think about doing this character, Isabel, in ‘Your Highness‘. We talked about how we should emphasize her fierceness, which was to serve as a contrast to Danny’s character.

What do you admire about David as a filmmaker?

Natalie Portman: I think he has an amazing visual sense. His movies are so incredibly beautiful and in addition to that, he works with actors in such a unique way. I was completely blown away by the way that he works and his ability to be really present with the actors. He comes up with good ideas all the time. He was always overflowing with kindness and good energy towards everyone.

David throws out new bits of dialogue and ideas while you’re shooting, correct?

Natalie Portman: Yes, and it was great. It was my first time working like that and I really loved it because it requires you to be really on your toes all the time. You have to be really aware and willing to try anything, which is how you should always try to be as an actor. He also gives you a real sense of the absurd, and is fun all the time, so that was really great.

Was it difficult to find the tone of the performance, because you have to react in a straight, dramatic fashion to events that are intentionally quite absurd?

Natalie Portman: You never really know what everyone else is doing when you’re in the scene. You’re trying to watch the people around you to get an idea of what the tone is. David was really good about that. He was always saying, ‘It’s not a parody, it’s not a parody, so play it as real as you can.’ I was lucky to have a lot of trust in my director.

Were you surprised by how far Danny and David pushed the bawdiness in the script?

Natalie Portman: I think the joy of the humour is that it is definitely aimed at a more mature audience. I think that there is a kindness of spirit, and it’s never mean-spirited towards the genre. My mom saw it with me and she was like, “ahh, that’s so sweet!” I think that she is right. Even tough there is so much vulgarity in places, it is still very sweet. And, of course, some people do talk like that.

Was Danny McBride a bundle of energy and humour on set?

Natalie Portman: He was always in a good mood. He’s nice to everyone. He’s a great actor and such a real person. Danny is super lovely, good natured and sweet.

What did you do in the way of fight choreography and sword training?

Natalie Portman: I had to do some of it myself. We used my double in all of the gymnastic sequences. I did get to do some of the fight sequences and it was a lot of fun. I liked the archery, too. Getting to do things like that was definitely a perk of the job.

Did you watch many of those swords and sorcery movies from the 1980s?

Natalie Portman: I watched a few of those to get into the spirit of things. It’s definitely a genre that’s ready to be revived. I watched Red Sonya, who was the inspiration for the bikini in our movie. I like The Dark Crystal. The puppet scene is one of my favorite moments in the movie.

Did you get to explore Ireland at all during the shoot?

Natalie Portman: I went to Dublin for a few weekends and to Cork. I got to go to the coast and explore the Giant’s Causeway, with all those beautiful rocks, and the rope bridge and everything in Northern Ireland. It was so beautiful. I also had a lot of Belfast time. I thought Ireland was a really interesting place with beautiful countryside’s. It was interesting being Israeli and walking around Belfast.

Finally, Natalie, where is your Academy Award® right now?

Natalie Portman: Right now it’s on the mantle, because it’s kind of funny for everyone. I’m sure I’ll hide it away eventually!

By the beard of Zeus. By the power of Greyskull. By the hammer of Thor, the epic adventure follows the story of  the mighty Thor (Chris Hemsworth), a powerful but arrogant warrior whose reckless actions reignite an ancient war. Thor is cast down to Earth by his father Odin (Anthony Hopkins) and is forced to live among humans. A beautiful, young scientist, Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), has a profound effect on Thor, as she ultimately becomes his first love. It’s while here on Earth that Thor learns what it takes to be a true hero when the most dangerous villain of his world sends the darkest forces of Asgard to invade Earth. Thor is Directed by Kenneth Branagh. Check out what Chris Hemsworth had to say about the film below. Look out for Thor swinging his hefty hammer at a cinemas in both 2D and 3D April 29th in the UK and May 6th in the US.

When did you first become aware of Thor?

Chris Hemsworth: It was pretty much when I got the part, six months before I received a stack of comic books. I knew vaguely a little bit about the character, I wasn’t sure where from. I probably knew more about the Viking/Norse mythology sort of section of it all. But when I got the part it was about educating myself and going through all the books.

There’s this great competitive relationship between Thor and Loki in the movie, how important was it to nail that core relationship?

Chris Hemsworth: We had a great time working together. Sometimes you get lucky and you work with people you get along with, that just makes it an easier process, easier to find the little hooks into the relationship. We both know what it’s like to have siblings and have that rivalry and we had so much fun sort of playing around with it.

How did you find the green screen acting?

Chris Hemsworth: We were very fortunate, there was actually far less green screen than I think people would imagine. We had these beautiful big sets that we were on and could interact with and be a part of. The smaller piece of green screen that we had, we thankfully had Ken to fill us with a visual and a very vivid picture of what was going on. But it is a whole other skill, it’s a very sort of numbing feeling being on green screen, the hum of the lights, everything’s very hypnotic, you need to really bring your energy up. It’s different to being on a set where big glaciers have been built, or in a big throne room, you really feel like you’re part of that world.

How much does wearing the costume help when getting into character?

Chris Hemsworth: It helped a hell of a lot. I remember first putting the costume on after having read the comic books for the previous six months and imagining how I was going to play this guy and convincing yourself and everyone else that this is what it was going to be. The costumes were so incredibly detailed, plus they sold such an image that when you put it on you REALLY feel like the character. It certainly makes our job easier, it makes you stand different, it makes you walk different, and it was just another layer to add on and work with.

How intimidating was it to be faced by Anthony Hopkins in full God-like mode?

Chris Hemsworth: (Laughs) Walking into this, the idea of standing opposite Anthony Hopkins in God-like, regal outfit, and he has that quality in my mind in every film, was intimidating. But I’ve gotta say the moment I got on set and met him I couldn’t have felt more supported and comfortable. He’s extremely collaborative and kind, he has a great sense of humour. He has a great passion for filmmaking and story-telling, a number of times he’d just turn to me and say “Isn’t this great? Isn’t Ken wonderful?” That was the vibe on set, it was such an enjoyable experience.

Did knowing there was going to be The Avengers movie affect how you played Thor in this film?

Chris Hemsworth: When I came on with Thor there was, yes certainly the knowledge that we would have Avengers in the future. But no, it didn’t affect the way I was playing Thor. Thor was certainly what I had right in front of me, and in order to develop Thor and to use him in Avengers it became about what I had right there and then.

By the beard of Zeus, by the power of Greyskull, by the hammer of Thor – with films release date fast approaching Marvel have released another clip from the flick via Yahoo, featuring Natalie Portman, Kat Dennings and Stellan Skarsgard vising Thor at the hospital. ‘Thor’ features a bumper cast in Hemsworth, Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Anthony Hopkins, Rene Russo, Skarsgard, Jaimie Alexander, Dennings, Ray Stevenson, Josh Dallas, Tadanobu Asano, Idris Elba, Clark Gregg and Colm Feore. Look out for Thor swinging his hefty hammer at a cinema in both 2D and 3D April 29th 2011 in the UK, and May 6th 2011 in the US. 

Paramount Pictures and Marvel Entertainment present the epic adventure, “Thor,” which spans the Marvel Universe from present day Earth to the realm of Asgard. At the center of the story is the mighty Thor (Chris Hemsworth), a powerful but arrogant warrior whose reckless actions reignite an ancient war. Thor is cast down to Earth by his father Odin (Anthony Hopkins) and is forced to live among humans. A beautiful, young scientist, Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), has a profound effect on Thor, as she ultimately becomes his first love. It’s while here on Earth that Thor learns what it takes to be a true hero when the most dangerous villain of his world sends the darkest forces of Asgard to invade Earth. Thor is Directed by Kenneth Branagh.

Danny McBride and James Franco team up for the medieval stoner adventure-comedy set in a fantastical world – Your Highness. As two princes on a daring mission to save their land, they must rescue the heir apparent’s fiancée before their kingdom is destroyed. The David Gordon Green directed film co-stars Natalie Portman, Zooey Deschanel, Charles Dance, Damian Lewis, Toby Jones and Justin Theroux. Look out for Your Highness in US cinemas April 8th, and April 13th in the UK.

You’ve shepherded this movie for a long time.

Danny McBride: Yeah, I couldn’t have done it without David Gordon Green. It was first conceived on ‘All The Real Girls,’ the first film I ever acted in, in 2001. David and I went to film school together, one game we would always play, because we’re big film nerds, was we would come up with a title of a movie and then try to figure out what that movie is about. One night, late at night, David said “Your Highness, you’re in it, what’s the movie about?” So quickly I thought what could Your Highness be about, “alright it’s about a knight, who gets stoned, then fights dragons.” It was just something we saw as a joke and laughed about. Then as the years went on it was idea we kept going back to, and adding to it.

Then on the set of ‘Pineapple Express’ we met James Franco, that’s when we really started to feel out what the movie could be about. Maybe it would work best as a movie about two brothers, their comradery and sibling rivalry. That was kind of where it came from, the movie started out as a joke and has finished as a major motion picture. It was born from the movies we grew up on, from Conan The Barbarian, Krull, Dragonslayer, Deathstalker, these 80’s action fantasy movies. We just wanted to do our take on one of those films.

How was it teaming up with Danny and David again? You and Danny have great chemistry together.

James Franco: It was a blast working with them again. Working on ‘Pineapple Express’ was probably the most fun I’ve ever had making a film, mainly because of the people I was working with. I was so fortunate that we got to do it again, with a bigger budget and an even crazier premise. I’ve been acting fifteen years now and I find there’s nothing I find more enjoyable than making films with my friends and people that I like, and people who are I think are also the funniest people around.

Danny McBride: We always thought of James Franco for Fabious. Me and David had such a great time working with him on ‘Pineapple Express.’ When we wrote this character we imagined him as the guy this story is typically about. He’s a good looking dude, he has all this physical prowess, he can do all this action. My character is all the things that is not becoming of a proper Prince.

Coming in as an outsider of David and Danny’s idea how do you see the movie?

James Franco: I love it, I think one of the great things about it, one of the unique things about it, is that it blends so many different elements. Its not a spoof of fantasy films. It in some ways takes itself very seriously, there’s some serious action to it, but then also it’s very funny. I think like all great comedies, or at the least the comedies I like, it has hilarious moments but it never breaks the spell for the audience, it never pushes the audience away by spoofing itself too much or undermining the characters by making them cardboard or flimsy. Everybody is really trying to do what their character believes in, so nobody breaks the spell of the world.

Danny McBride: We always approached it like it was a serious movie. Everything down to the armour was done by the same guy who done Kingdom of Heaven, the guy who designed the weapons was the guy who done Apocalytpo and Braveheart. Even with the casting choices, we thought the more serious the characters took it, the funnier the comedy would be.

By the beard of Zeus, by the power of Greyskull, by the hammer of Thor – with the release date fast approaching Marvel have unleashed these new TV Spots for the film via Moviefone and Apple. ‘Thor’ features a bumper cast in Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Anthony Hopkins, Rene Russo, Stellan Skarsgard, Jaimie Alexander, Kat Dennings, Ray Stevenson, Josh Dallas, Tadanobu Asano, Idris Elba, Clark Gregg and Colm Feore. Look out for Thor swinging his hefty hammer at a cinema in both 2D and 3D April 29th 2011 in the UK, and May 6th 2011 in the US. 

Paramount Pictures and Marvel Entertainment present the epic adventure, “Thor,” which spans the Marvel Universe from present day Earth to the realm of Asgard. At the center of the story is the mighty Thor (Chris Hemsworth), a powerful but arrogant warrior whose reckless actions reignite an ancient war. Thor is cast down to Earth by his father Odin (Anthony Hopkins) and is forced to live among humans. A beautiful, young scientist, Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), has a profound effect on Thor, as she ultimately becomes his first love. It’s while here on Earth that Thor learns what it takes to be a true hero when the most dangerous villain of his world sends the darkest forces of Asgard to invade Earth. Thor is Directed by Kenneth Branagh.

This new trailer for ‘Hesher,’ Spencer Susser’s upcoming twisted indie-drama has found its way online thanks to Apple. The film features a first-rate cast in Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Natalie Portman, Devin Brochu and Rainn Wilson. Gordon-Levitt looks like he totally transforms himself into a character like nothing you’ve seen him play before in this. ‘Hesher’ is scheduled to be released in the US May 13th, no UK date at this moment in time. Check out the full synopsis below.

Hesher is the story of a family struggling to deal with loss and the anarchist who helps them do it in a very unexpected way. TJ is 13 years old. Two months ago, his mom was killed in an accident, leaving TJ and his grieving dad to move in with grandma to pick up the pieces. Hesher is a loner. He hates the worldand everyone in it. He has long, greasy hair and homemade tattoos. He likes fire and blowing things up. He lives in his vuntil he meets TJ.

Hesher is that rare film that manages to be a completely original vision, a thoroughly entertaining story, and a provocative metaphor. Joseph Gordon-Levitt brings the character of Hesher to life with anger and angst, and Devin Brochu makes quite a splash as the young boy dealing with both the loss of his mother and an unwanted houseguest. Cowriter/director Spencer Susser crafts a multidimensional, darkly humorous film that exhibits an immensely talented storyteller at work.

“A GOD WILL FALL. AN AVENGER WILL RISE.” Marvel have let out the hatch these two new TV Spots for Kenneth Branagh’S ‘Thor.’ The upcoming comic book adaptation stars Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Stellan Skarsgård, Kat Dennings, Tom Hiddleston, Anthony Hopkins, Rene Russo, Jaimie Alexander, Ray Stevenson, Josh Dallas, Tadanobu Asano, Idris Elba, Clark Gregg and Colm Feore. Look out for Thor swinging his hefty hammer at a cinemas in both 2D and 3D April 29th 2011 in the UK, and May 6th 2011 in the US.

Paramount Pictures and Marvel Entertainment present the epic adventure, “Thor,” which spans the Marvel Universe from present day Earth to the realm of Asgard. At the center of the story is the mighty Thor (Chris Hemsworth), a powerful but arrogant warrior whose reckless actions reignite an ancient war. Thor is cast down to Earth by his father Odin (Anthony Hopkins) and is forced to live among humans. A beautiful, young scientist, Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), has a profound effect on Thor, as she ultimately becomes his first love. It’s while here on Earth that Thor learns what it takes to be a true hero when the most dangerous villain of his world sends the darkest forces of Asgard to invade Earth. Thor is Directed by Kenneth Branagh.

By the beard of Zeus, by the power of Greyskull, by the hammer of Thor – Marvel have unleashed these four new images from the film via SpiderMedia. The film features a bumper cast in Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Anthony Hopkins, Rene Russo, Stellan Skarsgard, Jaimie Alexander, Kat Dennings, Ray Stevenson, Josh Dallas, Tadanobu Asano, Idris Elba, Clark Gregg and Colm Feore. Look out for Thor swinging his hefty hammer at a cinema in both 2D and 3D April 29th 2011 in the UK, and May 6th 2011 in the US. UPDATE - Two posters added.

Paramount Pictures and Marvel Entertainment present the epic adventure, “Thor,” which spans the Marvel Universe from present day Earth to the realm of Asgard. At the center of the story is the mighty Thor (Chris Hemsworth), a powerful but arrogant warrior whose reckless actions reignite an ancient war. Thor is cast down to Earth by his father Odin (Anthony Hopkins) and is forced to live among humans. A beautiful, young scientist, Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), has a profound effect on Thor, as she ultimately becomes his first love. It’s while here on Earth that Thor learns what it takes to be a true hero when the most dangerous villain of his world sends the darkest forces of Asgard to invade Earth. Thor is Directed by Kenneth Branagh.