'Thor: Love & Thunder' Will Give Natalie Portman A Different Version Of Thor's Powers
Unlike Iron Man and Captain America, the Thor franchise at Marvel Studios will continue beyond a trilogy of films. Thor: Love & Thunder is the next installment of the superhero franchise led by Chris Hemsworth, and production is getting underway imminently down in Australia with Thor: Ragnarok director Taika Waititi back behind the camera. But when the franchise returns, there will be a new Thor in the form of Natalie Portman as Jane Foster, and according to the actress, she'll have a slightly different set of superpowers than the original god of thunder.
Natalie Portman recently appeared virtually on The Kelly Clarkson Show and discussed Thor: Love & Thunder.
During their brief discussion about the sequel, Portman further confirmed that when Jane Foster becomes the goddess of thunder, she will be known as The Mighty Thor. That's something Taika Waititi brought up last summer shortly after the news was announced at San Diego Comic-Con. You can just hear Hemsworth's version of Thor sarcastically commenting on why she gets to be called "mighty" and he doesn't. And it's not the only difference between the old Thor and the new one.
When Kelly Clarkson asked about the powers Jane Foster will have as Thor, Portman said, "She does have powers. It's not exactly the same as Thor. It's her own version of it." But unfortunately, she couldn't elaborate on what the differences in her powers might be.
In the comics, when Jane Foster wields Mjolnir, she has all the same powers of Thor, including the superhuman strength and speed, the ability to fly, being largely impervious to damage, and controlling lightning. But she also is able to control Mjolnir in a slightly more sophisticated way than anyone who previously wielded the hammer, which includes being able to change the hammer's trajectory and velocity mid-throw and spinning it around enemies to trap them.
Chris Hemsworth's Thor has been able to throw the hammer with a curve, even making it fly around in a circle to take down enemies, but I don't believe he can change the hammer's trajectory unless he calls it back to his hand while it's flying around. We definitely haven't seen him change the speed of the hammer after it's thrown either, so Thor: Love & Thunder could easily incorporate those details into the movie.
There's also the chance that Thor: Love & Thunder could take some cues from the recent Marvel Comics series where Jane Foster becomes Valkyrie. As that character, she wields Undrajarn the All-Weapon, a weapon that can change its shape and be whatever she needs. She also carries a sword, an extendable mace, and has large golden wings. That might be too different from Thor though, and it might veer too close to Wonder Woman's Golden Eagle armor from Wonder Woman 1984.
Thor: Love & Thunder doesn't hit theaters until February 11, 2022, so we've got plenty of time to learn more.