Natalie Portman’s MCU Return Can Finally Give Me The Moment I Wanted To See In Thor: Love & Thunder

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Summary

I was disappointed that Thor: Love and Thunder didn't show one important part of Jane Foster's storyline as the Mighty Thor.
Natalie Portman has expressed interest in returning to the MCU as Jane Foster, so this piece of her Mighty Thor story could be explored.
Jane Foster could also become a Valkyrie in the MCU's future, just as she does after her demise in Marvel Comics.

Thor: Love and Thunder skipped over a huge part of Jane Foster's story as the Mighty Thor, which I really want to see if Natalie Portman returns to the MCU. After taking a brief hiatus during Ragnarok, Natalie Portman reprised her role of Jane Foster in 2022's divisive Thor: Love and Thunder, but the Phase 4 sequel left her future in the MCU uncertain. Despite its flaws, I thought Love and Thunder's focus on the relationship between Thor and Jane Foster was fantastic, but director Taika Waititi neglected to show one pivotal moment in Jane's storyline.
In a recent issue of Total Film (via GamesRadar), Natalie Portman commented on her experience working on Thor: Love and Thunder. As well as expressing how much she enjoyed working on the movie, Portman also suggested that she would be open to returning as Jane Foster in the MCU's future, despite her character's emotional death. There has been speculation that Thor 5 is in development, with Chris Hemsworth returning and a new director replacing Waititi, which could explain Jane Foster's return, and may also explore a missing piece of her Mighty Thor adventure.

Oh, I have no idea. I mean, no one's asked me to. So I don't know. But sure, that was super-fun. Yeah, it was so fun. I had such a great time making it. I loved working with Taika [Waititi], and Chris [Hemsworth] is just the greatest, and so is Tessa [Thompson]. I was just laughing all day, every day. There's only my highest love for that experience – and not to mention Australia, which is just the most glorious country.

Thor: Love & Thunder Missed Out The Best Part Of Jane Foster’s Mighty Thor Story

Thor: Love and Thunder revealed that Jane Foster wanted to acquire Mjolnir to assuage the effects of her cancer, which was depicted in a tender montage that saw her journey to New Asgard. This gave us a run-down of Jane's origin story as the Mighty Thor, but missed out a huge chunk of this narrative, as her first power-up as the new MCU superhero wasn't shown on-screen. While I loved seeing Jane perform incredible feats as the Mighty Thor, I couldn't help but want to see her discovering her new powers for the first time.
It's not every day that a regular human, albeit a super-genius such as Jane Foster, becomes a superhero with the powers of an Asgardian God. The first time we see Jane Foster acting as the Mighty Thor is during Gorr the God Butcher's attack on New Asgard, several months after she first gained her new abilities. It's unclear why Taika Waititi chose not to show Jane Foster exploring her Thor-like gifts prior to this, as this would have provided some entertaining, powerful, and elevated moments for MCU veteran Portman.
Natalie Portman's MCU Appearances
Year
Role
Thor
2011
Main Role
Thor: The Dark World
2013
Main Role
Avengers: Endgame
2019
Archive Footage
What If...? Season 1, Episode 7
2021
Voice
Thor: Love and Thunder
2022
Main Role
I Want Natalie Portman’s MCU Return To Show Her Transformation Into The Mighty Thor Close Natalie Portman's return to the MCU hasn't yet been confirmed, and Jane Foster's death in Thor: Love and Thunder might make this difficult. However, if Portman does reprise the role, perhaps in Thor 5, I would love for Marvel Studios to give us a flashback sequence detailing her initial transformation and early adventures as the Mighty Thor. These scenes could even contribute to the much-wanted tonal change of Thor 5, as Jane's evolution into the Mighty Thor may not be played for comedy, but could instead be one of the MCU's most dramatic sequences.

Related Hemsworth Is Right About Thor's Tone (But Raises Another Problem) Chris Hemsworth has raised a good point about the tone of the God of Thunder. But it raises another question that Marvel will have to tackle.
The moments leading up to Jane Foster actually claiming Mjolnir as her own were seen in Thor: Love and Thunder, but there is time missing from the Mighty Thor's story. According to Marvel Studios' The Marvel Cinematic Universe: An Official Timeline book, Jane Foster first became the Mighty Thor in Spring 2025, but the battle in New Asgard didn't occur until that Fall. This means Jane had been operating as New Asgard's protector for roughly half a year, but we haven't seen her adventures during this period play out in live-action. Thor 5 could change that.
How Else Could Jane Foster Return To The MCU?

Natalie Portman potentially coming back after Thor: Love and Thunder has me very excited.
While a flashback sequence showing her first adventures as the Mighty Thor would be a brilliant way for Jane Foster to return to the MCU, there may be a way her return could be more permanent. Jane may have sacrificed herself, but Thor: Love and Thunder's post-credits scene saw her enter the Asgardian afterlife of Valhalla, where she was met by Idris Elba's Heimdall (who lost his life in Avengers: Infinity War). Following her demise in Marvel Comics, Jane Foster is brought back from Valhalla by Thor, so this storyline could also be adapted in Thor 5.
Upon her return from Valhalla in Marvel Comics, Jane Foster, with her cancer now being cured, becomes a Valkyrie rather than continuing as the Mighty Thor. This would be a great evolution for Natalie Portman's live-action Jane Foster, as this would give her the opportunity to continue on as a powerful Asgardian superhero in the MCU, without the dangerous side effects of wielding Mjolnir. Natalie Portman potentially coming back after Thor: Love and Thunder has me very excited, though it remains to be seen exactly how Marvel Studios will handle her return.

Thor: Love and Thunder PG-13 ActionFantasyAdventure Sci-FiSuperhero Thor: Love & Thunder is the fourth Thor film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and director Taika Waititi's second outing with the character. The movie finds Thor (Chris Hemsworth) on a journey to find inner piece. But when Gorr the God Butcher (Christian Bale) goes on a killing rampage against the gods, Thor is thrown back into the action. Tessa Thompson returns as Valkyrie, as does Waititi’s Korg. Natalie Portman also returns to the franchise for the first time in nine years as Jane Foster, who transforms into the Mighty Thor to wield Mjolnir.
Director Taika Waititi Release Date July 8, 2022 Distributor(s) Disney Writers Jennifer Kaytin Robinson , Taika Waititi Runtime 118 minutes prequel(s) Thor , Thor: The Dark World , Thor: Ragnarok Budget $250 million Expand Upcoming MCU Movies
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