It’s been a rocky road for Natalie Portman in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but she surprised everyone by appearing on stage at this year’s Comic-Con with the announcement that she will wield Mjolnir as Thor in the upcoming fourth installment Love and Thunder.
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In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, Portman revealed that she’s excited to wield the hammer and she was coaxed into returning by Ragnarok director Taika Waititi, who came to her with the idea for the fourth film with Jane Foster taking on the mantle of Thor. Despite seemingly being finished with the franchise after the fallout from Thor: The Dark World, she found the idea “very exciting,” and noted she also signed on for the opportunity to work with Waititi & Tessa Thompson and reunite with Chris Hemsworth.
Thor: Love and Thunder will be directed by Waititi (Jojo Rabbit) which will be followup to his wildly successful 2017 sequel Thor: Ragnarok. Natalie Portman is set to return as Jane and will wield the mighty Mjolnir. Hemsworth and Thompson will also return as Thor and Valkyrie, respectively. The female Thor storyline is based on Jason Aaron’s run on “The Mighty Thor” in which a cancer-stricken Jane Foster takes up the mantle and powers of Thor. The film is scheduled to be released on November 5, 2021.
The film will reportedly immediately start shooting in early 2020 in Australia after Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings has wrapped its production.
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