Between the pages of Marvel comics, the iconic superhero characters have often gone through a number of evolutions through the years. As the MCU soon enters it’s fourth phase of films next year, we’ll soon see Natalie Portman’s Jane Foster take on a new role as Mighty Thor in Taika Waititi’s Thor: Love and Thunder. Yes, Thor’s former ex-girlfriend and astrophysicist will wield the Mjölnir as she does in a 2014 comic run by writer Jason Aaron and artist Russell Dauterman.
The question on comic book fans’ minds however is just how faithful to the storyline Natalie Portman’s Mighty Thor will be. In the series, Thor has become unworthy of his hammer. Jane Foster wields the hammer as she is battling breast cancer, and its magical components purges her body of the sickness’ toxins when in her possession. Here’s what Thor: Love and Thunder writer and director, Taika Waititi has said:
I think that’s a really powerful part of the books. I think it’s really cool that she’s fighting this thing and there’s two battles going on. Personally I really love that storyline. But whether it ends up in the film is yet to be seen.
Taika Waititi is keeping the plot close to the vest. During a recent interview with Variety, he also explained that he’s unsure if the upcoming Thor sequel will be a complete left of the Mighty Thor storyline, especially since plans change on Marvel films even during the editing process, late in production. However, he does sound intrigued by adapting Jane Foster’s breast cancer storyline to the big screen, especially considering how strongly it informs the particular series.
Natalie Portman was notably missing from Thor: Ragnarok in the 2017 epic from Taika Waititi, much because the movie takes place off Earth. For the fourth installment, the writer/director approached the Oscar-winning actress and convinced her to come back for a fresh take on her character for the big-screen. She and Chris Hemsworth will both star in the film as Thors, along with Tessa Thompson’s Valykrie, who has assumed the title of King of Asgard since Endgame.
Since Thor: Love and Thunder will likely take place around a decade after audiences have last heard from Jane Foster in the MCU timeline, there’s defintely room for a different side of her to take shape. Her cancer diagnosis could be an inciting incident for Thor to meet back up with her following their break-up. A superhero origin story involving a person with the most common cancer diagnosed in women in the U.S. could be a powerful story for those affected by it to latch on to as well.
Taika Waititi is in early development of the Thor: Love and Thunder script ahead of its November 5, 2021 release date. First, you can catch his film Jojo Rabbit hitting theaters this Friday, October 18.
