In 2019’s SDCC, it got announced to thunderous applause that a fourth Thor film is in production. Titled Thor: Love and Thunder, the film will draw heavily from writer Jason Aaron‘s early work on the character where the God of Thunder fights one of his greatest foes, Gorr the God Butcher. He also lost his title and hammer to his former romantic partner, Jane Foster, who went on to take the mantle for herself as the Mighty Thor. As such, one could surmise that Love and Thunder exist mainly to be a passing-of-the-hammer tale in the MCU. Unfortunately for Natalie Portman‘s character, the hammer was in multiple pieces the last time we saw it. Director Taika Waititi made a concerted effort on the Comic-Con stage to let fans know that Jane Foster would indeed be holding Mjolnir when she arrives in theaters in 2022. So, how the heck are they going to pull that off? Let’s dig into three of their most likely options in an increasingly wacky order.
Eitri and Nidavellir
Let’s face it. It isn’t the first time we’ve seen Mjolnir in shards. Thor has lost his trusted sidepiece on multiple occasions in the comics, whether it’s at the hands of the aptly-named Destroyer or his grumpy grandfather Bor. More often than not, he realizes that he can make a new Mjolnir. Marvel comics have commonly found Odinson making his way to various forging locations to put the pieces back together. Magic isn’t even always required, as the Thunderer once even managed to reconstruct the legendary hammer in a steel mill in Pittsburgh. The MCU’s Thor wouldn’t have to resort to such methods, as he’s already pals with an answer to fixing Mjolnir. We met the last of the dwarves on the dying star Nidavellir, and it doesn’t seem like a reach that he could put the hammer back together if the remnants get found in that fateful Norwegian field. Sure, the last time we saw Eitri, Nidavellir was a little worse-for-wear, but who’s to say Thor hasn’t gone back to help in the time since Thanos’ defeat? With any luck, Hulk might have even been able to bring back some of the dwarves when he reversed the Snap. This direction might be the quickest explanation for Mjolnir’s return and a great reason to give us more of giant Peter Dinklage.
Time-Travel
Marvel Studios has already brought back Mjolnir once before through time travel. While that hammer had to be taken back to its original point in time, Waititi may attempt to go two-for-two on those shenanigans. After all, there is a precedence for this in the comics that the film is adapting. The arc that introduces Gorr takes place throughout several millennia, bringing him into conflict with a younger Thor from the Viking Age, a modern Thor we all know and love, and an older Thor who lives alone on a desolate Asgard. Gorr’s rather unusual abilities lead to all three versions of Thor fighting side-by-side against the God-Butcher on his home planet. Set photos have already leaked showing what could potentially be our first look at the said planet. If that’s the case, we could see a younger Thor bring his Mjolnir to the present-day, where it somehow ends up in the hands of Jane Foster. That reminds me, there is still an entire Disney+ series on the way based around Loki. It’s unlikely that he ends up worthy of carrying the hammer, but we may see him pull off his greatest trick and deliver Mjolnir through time and space. Actually, now that we mention Loki.
Multiverse
If there’s one thing we know the MCU is delving into in the coming years, it’s the multiverse. Between recent revelations on WandaVision, all the rumors surrounding Marvel and Sony’s third Spider-Man film, and the literal title of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, you can bet we’re in for some “alt-u” impacts moving forward. Although complicated, we could hypothetically see a Mjolnir pop in from somewhere else in Marvel’s massive catalog of alternate worlds. Our very own Ms. Lizzie Hill suggested the idea that the hammer-wielding Jane we meet in the film could hail from a different universe, where Gorr had already done away with the Odinson, and his Mjolnir ended up in Jane’s possession. The resulting pairing between Portman and Hemsworth against Gorr could be a fitting substitute for the Thor Trio team-up from the comics, though this could lead to more questions than answers. If Kevin Feige did want to commit to a hammer from the multiverse, it would be on my wish-list that it came from Beta Ray Bill, a legend among man and horse alike. It could be unlikely, but it is just too much fun to theorize on his potential appearance.
