Thor has been one of the principal players of the Marvel universe since he was introduced in 1962's Journey Into Mystery #83, but the Odinson isn't the only one who's served as the Asgardian "deity." Since 2014, a woman has officially held the God of Thunder title in the comics, and if you ask Karl Urban, who plays Skurge in the upcoming Thor: Ragnarok, the Marvel Cinematic Universe should have a woman wielding Mjolnir in the future, too. When asked what he thought about the prospect of a female Thor in the MCU, Urban responded:
I think it's time. I think it's well overdue. Absolutely. Yeah, I'd like to see that movie.
The future of the Thor series past the MCU's Phase Three remains uncertain right now. While both Chris Hemsworth's Thor and Tom Hiddleston Loki will both appear in Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers 4, we won't get an idea of what's in store for the rest of Asgard until Thor: Ragnarok's wide release. Nevertheless, Karl Urban made it clear in his interview with Monkeys Fighting Robots that somewhere down the line, he'd like to see a woman inheriting the Thor mantle and leading her own adventure. Though that's not to say that Hemsworth couldn't still appear in the MCU if he wanted to, as the male Thor, a.k.a. the Odinson, is still wandering around the Marvel comics universe, albeit with a prosthetic arm and using the battle axe Jarnbjorn.
Of course, if the MCU were to introduce a female Thor, it would likely have to be someone different than who it is in the comics: Jane Foster. Jane has been a member of the Thor mythos since the beginning, primarily due to being the nurse who assisted Dr. Donald Blake, Thor's old human guise. However, after Thor Odinson lost the ability to use his trusty hammer at the conclusion of Original Sin, Jane found Mjolnir and was deemed worthy enough to wield it. Natalie Portman played Jane Foster in the first two Thor movies, but she didn't return for Thor: Ragnarok, and so far there's no indication that she'll ever return to the MCU. Unless Marvel is willing to recast Jane, the studio need to look elsewhere for a lady Thor, be it someone already established in this world or a brand new player.
We'll be sure to let you know if the MCU announces any plans to introduce a woman as Thor. In the meantime, Thor: Ragnarok will place Chris Hemsworth's iteration of the God of Thunder back in the spotlight. There he'll try to stop Hela, the Asgardian goddess of death, from unleashing the apocalyptic Ragnar event, as well as fight for survival on the gladiator planet Sakaar, where he'll reunite with his work friend Hulk.
Thor: Ragnarok hits theaters on November 3, and don't forget to look through our 2017 screening guide to find out what the year's remaining theatrical releases are.
