Claim: Tom Hiddleston turned down the role he was offered in War Horse.

Thomas William Hiddleston -LRB- born 9 February 1981 -RRB- is an English actor , producer and musical performer . At the beginning of his career , he appeared in West End theatre productions of Cymbeline -LRB- 2007 -RRB- and Ivanov -LRB- 2008 -RRB- . He won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Newcomer in a Play for his role in Cymbeline and was also nominated for the same award for his role as Cassio in Othello .   He came to wider public attention when cast as Loki in the Marvel Cinematic Universe , appearing in Thor -LRB- 2011 -RRB- , The Avengers -LRB- 2012 -RRB- , Thor : The Dark World -LRB- 2013 -RRB- , and Thor : Ragnarok -LRB- 2017 -RRB- . In 2011 , he won the Empire Award for Best Male Newcomer and was nominated for the BAFTA Rising Star Award . Hiddleston has also appeared in Steven Spielberg 's War Horse -LRB- 2011 -RRB- , The Deep Blue Sea -LRB- 2011 -RRB- , Woody Allen 's romantic comedy Midnight in Paris -LRB- 2011 -RRB- , the 2012 BBC series Henry IV and Henry V , and the romantic vampire film Only Lovers Left Alive -LRB- 2013 -RRB- .   In late 2013 and early 2014 , Hiddleston starred as the title character in the Donmar Warehouse production of Coriolanus , winning the Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Actor . In 2015 , he starred in Guillermo del Toro 's Crimson Peak , Ben Wheatley 's High Rise , and played the troubled country music singer Hank Williams in the biopic I Saw The Light .   In 2016 , he starred in and was an executive producer of the AMC / BBC limited series The Night Manager , for which he received two Primetime Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie and Outstanding Limited Series , and won his first Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Miniseries or Television Film .