With Spider-Man: Homecoming now in the rear view mirror, the time has come to look ahead at the next installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Taika Waititi's Thor: Ragnarok looks like a game changer for the franchise, and will bring together the title character and The Hulk, while also introducing a slew of new characters to the MCU. One of the newcomers is Cate Blanchett's Hela, who will serve as the main antagonist in the threequel. On paper, Blanchett seems like an unlikely choice to play the lead villain in an action film, although she recently revealed the scene that convinced her to take the part: the one where Hela destroys Thor's hammer.
This news comes from a recent interview Cate Blanchett did with E! at San Diego Comic-Con. The entire Ragnarok cast did the rounds to promote the upcoming blockbuster, it's here where Blanchett revealed how Hela's destruction of Mjolnir was the deal maker for her. She said,
That had me at 'hello,' actually. I thought that was really exciting that they were prepared to destroy Thor's power in the first few minutes. So, yeah, it's a nice entrance.
Showing up and destroying the most iconic aspect of Thor (as well as the source for his electrical powers) is certainly one way to make an entrance. Hela is out for blood, and it's clear she'll do anything to bring along Ragnarok and destroy Asgard.
Hela is perhaps the most powerful of Thor's enemies from his solo movies, which is clear the minute she shows up in Ragnarok, and it's accompanying trailers. Despite Thor (and Vision) supposedly being the only person who can wield Mjolnir, she's able to not only grab it by the hammer, but also destroy it through the sheer willpower and strength of her hand. It looks like Thor's future in the MCU is going to be quite different, and he'll have a struggle in the threequel that he can't just punch his way out of.
Hela's destruction Mjolnir just proves how the Marvel Cinematic Universe will be changing drastically through the next few films. Phase Three's end is drawing closer, as is the contracts on major MCU players like Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Evans. As such, a plethora of new heroes are being introduced, and it seems like a bigger focus will be on the cosmic side of the shared universe. Ragnarok is certainly doing just this, as the film will largely revolve around the title character's attempts to escape Sakaar and return home to Asgard. And when Thor shows up in the next Avengers movies, he'll presumably have a different feel for his powers.
Thor: Ragnarok will arrive in theaters on November 3, 2017, before the title character, the Hulk, Loki, and Valkyrie make another appearance in Avengers: Infinity War. In the meantime, be sure to check out our 2017 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.
