Here are some photos of Kenneth Branagh at last night’s LA premiere of Cinderella, which he directed. This is the live-action version, starring Downton Abbey’s Lily James as Cinderella and Cate Blanchett as the Wicked Stepmother. Ahead of the premiere, Kenneth sat down for a lengthy conversation with The Hollywood Reporter about this film and his previous films, like Thor. He talked about Shakespeare too, of course, and said that the adaptation that he will definitely make at some point is The Winter’s Tale. He also said that as a director, it all starts with casting, even when the studio isn’t 100% convinced of his choices. Branagh used his Thor casting as an example, and discussed how Kevin Feige really wasn’t into casting Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston as Thor and Loki.

He said his decision not to direct the sequel to Thor had nothing to do with Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige’s considerable input. “It was a long time [making the first film] and they were way too quick for me to get straight back into another,” he noted. “[But] it was a pleasurable experience and a film I’m very proud of.”

Speaking of Feige, he added: “Kevin is a muller, he goes away and he thinks. When we came to cast the two boys, Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston, that was a long process. And even on the morning in which we made the calls, we came in, and I remember Kevin wandering around this tiny little conference table. It’s just me and him and one of the executives on that Saturday morning. I’d already booked a call to Hemsworth and to Hiddleston — and he still wasn’t sure whether we were going to go with this. I kept saying, ‘It’s these guys. It is these two guys. Chris Hemsworth is Thor. Tom Hiddleston is Loki. You’re going to be OK.’ And he knew it. We made the call and it was lovely, but it takes a long time to do it. Working with Kevin is very, very enjoyable. I regard him as a very, very dear friend, [but] that process is very unusual.”

[From THR]

It’s still weird to me that Kenneth Branagh has become a go-to director for the studios, but I guess we should give him credit for giving us Tom Hiddleston as Loki. I bet Marvel is grateful for it too, because Hiddles is one of the most popular and fan-friendly actors working in the Marvel universe. But yeah, they were taking a big chance on two relatively unknown actors. And for that, Branagh should be applauded for going with his gut.

View image | gettyimages.com

View image | gettyimages.com

Photos courtesy of Getty, WENN.