Grab your hammers and don your cloaks: the trailer for the third Thor film has dropped and it looks like we’re in for a real treat.
Titled Thor: Love and Thunder, the film will see the superhero Thor (played by Chris Hemsworth) struggling to find a fulfilling way to spend his life after setting his axe down for good.
After his homeworld of Asgard was destroyed and a new Asgardian settlement established on Earth, Thor is at a loose end. “These hands that were once for battle, now they’re but humble tools for peace,” he says over clips of him meditating on an alien planet. “I need to figure out exactly who I am.”
The film then cuts to shots of Thor getting back into shape (infamously, the character was dubbed “Fat Thor” during his appearance in the last Avengers film) and exploring the universe, including a new battle arena presided over by a Zeus-like figure wielding a thunderbolt.
We also see returning star Tessa Thompson as Valkyrie, who is ruling New Asgard and does not look to be enjoying it – as well as Chris Pratt as Peter Quill, or Starlord, and his crew.
Most intriguingly, the end of the trailer shows a glimpse of returning love interest Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) as a new female Thor, complete with hammer and armour - and a new image, released by Empire, has also given fans a better look at a bulked-out Jane as Thor.
Running alongside an interview with director Taika Waititi, the picture heralds a big change for the original Thor, played by Chris Hemsworth.
“It’s been about eight years,” Waititi said. “She’s had a whole other life, and then the love of your life comes back on the scene, and is now dressed like you. It’s a real mindf**k for Thor.”
EXCLUSIVE IMAGE ALERT ⚡️
— Empire Magazine (@empiremagazine) May 7, 2022
Jane Foster's return in #ThorLoveAndThunder is "a real mindfuck for Thor," says Taika Waititi.
READ MORE: https://t.co/RqKtzzL4cK pic.twitter.com/4cJmFSoWCY
In the comic books, Jane assumes the mantle of The Mighty Thor while battling breast cancer before dying and being reincarnated as Valkyrie.
This fan theory was confirmed at the Marvel panel at San Diego ComicCon in 2019, where Jane Foster actress Natalie Portman walked onto the stage to cheers after being introduced as the next Thor, and was ceremonially handed a prop version of Mjolnir by the film’s director Taika Waititi. However, the big mystery of how she manages to reforge the destroyed Mjolnir – and how she becomes Thor – remains unanswered.
With all these tantalising plot threads hanging, it’s safe to say that fans could not be more excited for the film to drop. “Here is the full length finished movie,” Waititi joked when posting the trailer. “Eat and enjoy.”
“Like Taika Waititi ripped the page out of a comic book and plastered it on the screen,” was one fan’s verdict on Twitter, while another wrote that they “genuinely cannot wait for yet another masterpiece from [Waititi]”.
American actor Josh Gad was a fan. “Holy s*** this looks great”, he posted.
Now excuse us, we’ll be watching the trailer on repeat until the film comes out.
