'Thor: The Dark World' To Shoot At Stonehenge

The New Mexico-desert backdrop of 2011's "Thor" provided some of the most pleasing, scenic real-life locations on practical production's side of the beautifully CGI-rendered Asgard in the Marvel Studios legacy so far.

Producers of "Thor: The Dark World" clearly feel the ante can be ratcheted up while keeping congruity to continuity.

Blogger and Marvel fan Kaliniecki tweeted the photo below, taken from a southwest England countryside location near Stonehenge, and reported that the 2013 Marvel sequel is shooting at the famed and mysterious-in-origin rock formation. To an inquisitive follower, Kaliniecki added that he "didn't see much, they're filming dusk and dawn."

Production ramps up in early September, reportedly including shoots in Iceland, in and around London's underground tunnels and near Bourne Wood's woodland hills, according to ComicBookMovie.com.

Famed for its unexplained origins and speculated ties mysticism and the unexplained, the 5,000-year-old circular formation also appeared in the fifth-series finale of the current incarnation of the BBC's "Doctor Who." In Marvel lore, it's been used as a portal between realms. Not coincidentally, much of the "Dark World" plot is said to explore the relationship between God of Thunder and Avenger Thor (Chris Hemsworth) and his father, Asgardian King Odin, as well as human love interest Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) as he travels the Nine Realms.

"The Dark World" is set to be the second single-hero film to follow up this past summer's record-setting smash "The Avengers" and begin the build toward 2014's "The Avengers" sequel, following the 2013 premiere of "Iron Man 3." This next chapter also features the return of Jaimie Alexander as Asgardian warrior Lady Sif, as well as the debuting Christopher Eccleston and Alice Kriege.

With Alan Taylor of "Game of Thrones" fame taking over for departed "Thor" director Kenneth Branagh, "Thor: The Dark World' hits theaters Nov. 8, 2013.