Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, in addition to having a name that’s fun to say, is also a seasoned actor with credits on beloved shows like Lost and HBO’s Oz. And, heck, he’s a big screen actor with credits in a few genre works like The Mummy Returns and G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra too. So he’s probably the perfect choice to play one of the villains in Marvel’s upcoming Thor sequel, Thor: The Dark World.
According to Variety, the English actor has signed on to the sequel to play the role of the vengeful and powerful Kurse. A look at Marvel’s in-house Wiki of all their characters explains that Kurse started off as a Dark Elf called Algrim the Strong, who served a master called Malekith the Accursed. After Thor came knocking on Malekith’s door to rescue an Asgardian woman that he had kidnapped, Malekith set Algrim on Thor and had the two do battle. Before a victor could be declared, however, the treacherous Malekith opened a chasm under the two warriors, sending them plummeting to their deaths toward a lake of molten lava.
Of course, Thor being able to fly and all, he survived. But the twist is that Algrim survived too. Thanks to his mystical armor and a generally furious will to exact revenge, Algrim emerged from the lava as Kurse. What’s the difference between Algrim and Kurse? Well, post-lava bath the Dark Elf finds himself fused with his armor, somehow even more powerful, generally suffering from amnesia, and having the overriding notion that Thor is responsible for his hardships, and it’s time to exact revenge.
What can be learned from all of this? First of all, Malekith (who’s being played by Dr. Who’s Christopher Eccleston) is a total dick. And second of all, it sounds like Thor is going to have quite a lot to deal with in this upcoming sequel. Hopefully Kat Dennings brings two tasers this time.