Thor 4 Theory: How Mjolnir Can Return In Love & Thunder
Mjolnir can return to the MCU in Thor: Love and Thunder. Thor’s trademark hammer in both Marvel Comics and the movies was destroyed by Thor: Ragnarok’s Hela (Cate Blanchett), who effortlessly shattered it into pieces. What Hela did to Thor (Chris Hemsworth) left him without a weapon and forced him to rely on his innate abilities as the God of Thunder.
Thanks to the prophecy about Surtur destroying Asgard, Thor was able to get through Thor: Ragnarok without Mjolnir, but the conflict in Avengers: Infinity War called for Thor to arm himself with a new weapon. Joined by Groot (Vin Diesel) and Rocket (Bradley Cooper), Thor went to the dwarf known as Eitri (Peter Dinklage) and asked him to build a replacement. After going through a considerable amount of effort, Thor helped Eitri complete the construction of Stormbreaker, which in the comics is the magical axe wielded by Beta Ray Bill. With Stormbreaker, Thor was able to badly wound Thanos (Josh Brolin) in the battle at Wakanda.
Due to a trip through the timestream, Thor was able to get his hands on Mjolnir again in Avengers: Endgame. During the final confrontation with the Mad Titan, the hammer was temporarily wielded by Captain America (Chris Evans) in what became one of the film’s most memorable moments. Mjolnir doesn’t currently exist in the MCU’s timeline, but it could be that the fourth movie in the Thor franchise will restore the hammer and put it in the hands of either Thor or a completely different MCU character. Here’s how Thor: Love and Thunder can feature the return of Mjolnir.
There are two versions of Mjolnir in the MCU. The one that was pulled from the timestream was returned to its proper place in the timeline by Captain America, so it’s no longer a part of the equation. As for the present-day Mjolnir, it’s still in pieces. In Thor: Ragnarok, they were last seen on a field in Norway when Hela broke the hammer, but there’s no word on what happened to them after that. Whether Mjolnir is intact or not, the pieces left behind by Hela are invaluable, considering that the hammer was made from Uru metal, a precious resource from another realm. There’s no doubt that there are people in the MCU who'd be desperate to get their hands on them, but there’s a question of whether or not the enchantment on Mjolnir survived the hammer’s destruction. If it did, no one but Thor may be able to move them. And if it didn’t, then they should be still lying on that cliff in Norway.
Loki could be the key to bringing Mjolnir back. There’s no confirmation that Loki (Tom Hiddleston) will be back for Thor: Love and Thunder, but there is a strong expectation from fans that he’ll be involved in some capacity. He’s been integral to every Thor movie that preceded it. Loki’s death in Infinity War won’t stand in the way, since a previous version of Loki escaped during the time travel portion of Endgame. The 2012 incarnation of the character will be the focus of Disney+’s Loki TV series.
Since Loki has been described as a time travel show, he could visit various points in the past, creating the potential for the God of Mischief to come in contact with a Mjolnir from a different timeline. The problem, though, is that Loki — despite all his magical tricks — may not be able to take it with him. It would be unlikely for even the redeemed Loki from Avengers: Infinity War to be worthy of lifting Mjolnir, so the villainous 2012 version certainly won’t be able to move it either. A transportation spell of some kind could be the only way for Loki to send it from the past to the present.
A second possibility exists for Mjolnir to return to the MCU. In the Marvel Comics crossover event, War of the Realms, Volstagg wielded the hammer of the Ultimate Thor before it was destroyed by a villain called the Mangog. Jane Foster approached the shards and due to her worthiness, she was able to pick up the handle. Afterward, the shards of the broken hammer magically returned to the hammer and the Ultimate Mjolnir was rebuilt.
A similar situation in the MCU could be what transforms Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) into the Mighty Thor from the comics. Jane could come to Norway or whatever the current location of Mjolnir is, and her presence could restore the hammer to its full might. Alternatively, Thor could take Jane’s role War of the Realms by going to Norway himself. The problem with this is that it would raise the question: why didn’t Thor do this in the first place? It could be that worthiness alone won’t be enough to reconstruct it. A magical spell may be required to complete the restoration process.
Regardless of who engineers Mjolnir’s return, it’s difficult to say who will ultimately wield the iconic hammer. The three characters who have the best chances of holding its power are Thor, Jane Foster, and Beta Ray Bill (who is heavily rumored to appear but not yet confirmed). The latter of the three has the slimmest chance of possessing Mjolnir. Even if he is in the movie, there’s a higher probability that Beta Ray Bill will end up with Stormbreaker, since that’s his weapon of choice in the comic books. If Jane is the one who brings it back, on the other hand, she could have it for most of the movie as “The Mighty Thor.” That being said, Marvel’s decision to make Jane Foster the new Thor may not be one with a long-term effect on the MCU’s future. It remains to be seen if Jane’s arc in Thor: Love and Thunder is a one-and-done adventure or the beginning of something new for the MCU. It’s possible that Jane could be the MCU’s new Thor going forward, especially if this is the end of the line for Hesmworth’s character.
If Marvel doesn’t intend for Jane Foster to take Thor’s place, the movie could end with the hammer back in the possession of its rightful owner, Thor. It could be that the only reason why there’s two Gods of Thunder in Thor 4 is because the villain they’re facing is someone neither of them can deal with alone. Once he’s defeated, Jane could relinquish the hammer to him. That may be an unexpected outcome, especially if Thor 4 is the last installment, but the Thor franchise doesn’t have to end with Thor retiring or dying, like what Endgame did for Captain America and Iron Man. Thor: Love and Thunder could conclude his MCU story by sending him off-world for more adventures, armed with the same weapon that got him through over a thousand years of fighting. This sort of ending would leave the door open for Thor to appear in a potential Avengers 5.