Chris Hemsworth’s Thor is finally returning this summer in Thor: Love and Thunder, but he won’t be the only God of Thunder on the proverbial block. Like her comic book counterpart, Natalie Portman’s version of Jane Foster will become The Mighty Thor, although Marvel Studios is still keeping tight-lipped on how this transformation will occur. However, some new Love and Thunder merchandise has been revealed that seemingly confirms how the MCU’s Jane will join the franchise’s superhero ranks.
As with most superheroes movies, there will plenty of tie-in toys for Thor: Love and Thunder, including an action figure of Jane Foster as The Mighty Thor made by SHFiguarts. We’d already gotten a good look at Jane as Thor last month, but take a peek at the pictures of said action figure below to see the weapon she’ll wield in in the upcoming Marvel movie (via Thor Love and Thunder News):
More photos of Jane’s #ThorLoveandThunder figure by S.H.Figuarts(via https://t.co/MWBzdFIrw6) pic.twitter.com/7NRxkuTATNFebruary 17, 2022
A version of Thor holding Mjolnir obviously isn’t strange on its own, especially considering it was the same weapon Jane used during her time as the God of Thunder in the comics. But in the MCU, Mjolnir being around is… odd. Hela destroyed the enchanted hammer in Thor: Ragnarok, and while OG Thor retrieved a past version of Mjolnir during Avengers: Endgame, it was eventually returned to its proper place in time and is still shattered in the present day.
Evidently though, judging by the cracks on the Mjolnir by action figure Jane Foster, the hammer will be reformed during Thor: Love and Thunder and find its way into her hands. This explains why she now shares the same mantle as Chris Hemsworth’s character, who’s been wielding Stormbreaker since Avengers: Infinity War. How will Mjlonir be reconstituted? Well, some photos and a video leaked last year from the Love and Thunder set provide some context.
We learned by the time Thor: Love and Thunder begins, a memorial has been set up in New Asgard on the spot where Odin passed in Thor: Ragnarok, and it includes Mjolnir’s shards. There’s a scene where Jane Foster visits the memorial and looks at the shards, only to suddenly swept into the air by some mystical force. We’re still in the dark about why this is specifically happening to Jane, but it can be deduced that whatever magic is at work will also reform Mjolnir and allow Jane to possess the power of Thor.
In addition to Natalie Portman’s Jane Foster debuting as The Mighty Thor, Thor: Love and Thunder will also feature its title characters battling Christian Bale’s Gorr the God Butcher, Tessa Thompson’s Valkyrie searching for a queen to rule New Asgard alongside her, the return of Jaimie Alexander’s Lady Sia and the Guardians of the Galaxy somehow getting involved in the craziness, even if we don’t end up seeing them for that long. In addition to sitting back in the director’s chair and co-writing the script with Jennifer Kaytin Robinson, Taika Waititi will also reprise Korg, with the movie delving into the Kronan’s origins. Oh, and let’s not forget that Love and Thunder will open the doors to Marvel’s Olympian lore by casting Russell Crowe as Zeus.
Thor: Love and Thunder opens in theaters on July 8, so with a little under five full months to go, hopefully we’ll get some official images or a trailer soon. Other upcoming Marvel movies include Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness on May 6 and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever on November 11.
