Where the MCU’s Thor Could Be Headed After Infinity War
Educated guesses would have us believe that we might be seeing the last of Captain America, Iron Man and several other original Avengers. With almost a decade of superhero antics behind them, no one can fault any of these actors from moving on from their roles. After all, part of the novelty of the Avengers, and Marvel Comics in general, is the revolving door of superheroes, the comings and goings that keep things fresh, new and exciting.
However, while most actors have been keeping mum on the ultimate fate of their characters — as well as their status in the MCU — for the sake of surprise, Chris Hemsworth has gone on record saying he is ready for more Thor beyond Infinity War and Avengers 4. This prospect, which he doubled down on by saying he and director Taika Waititi have actively discussed the hypothetical Thor 4, has us excited. More, it makes us wonder where Thor could go after the final two Avengers movies.
Thor is a character who has gone through many changes since his introduction to the MCU. He started off as a pompous, power-hungry brat who learned humility and respect. He became the protector of Earth, and a team player. He’s suffered many losses, from his mother and his father to his entire support system. In Taika Waititi’s Thor: Ragnarok, the God of Thunder lost his mighty hammer Mjolnir, an eye, his Asgardian best fiends, and the entire realm of Asgard.
The character has changed and evolved from one movie to the next, and Hemsworth has only just begun to embrace the true potential of the role. “After this last experience with Taika,” the actor said, “and actually these last two Avengers, I feel like we’ve reinvented the character a number of times — even in these next two, he evolves again, and you don’t get that opportunity often in a franchise.” The question then, is, where could this evolution leave him, and where would that lead him, next?
The first, most obvious direction for Thor 4 could pick up directly from Ragnarok‘s ending. In the movie, Thor not only lost his home, he also lost his brethren. Most Asgardian gods perished at the hands of Hela, and Asgard was obliterated by Surtur. What few survivors the newly-minted King Thor managed to save are bound to be attacked by Thanos, which leads us to believe that Thor could very well end up being the last of his kind. Of curse, death is merely an inconvenience in superhero stories, so the Asgardians will likely make a return. This development would leave the God of Thunder with no choice but to seek out the reincarnated Asgardians.
Such a story took place in the comics where, after a different type of Ragnarok event, Thor recreated Asgard as a floating city above Oklahoma. The rebirthed Asgardians had taken up residence in human host bodies, unaware of who they really were. Thor simply had to find and awaken them. This story, which was also notable for introducing a new female identity for Loki, could easily serve as the basis for Thor’s next journey. It would be a fascinating way for Thor to face his loneliness, and to right the wrongs of the events that led him here in the first place.
Of course, if Thor looks to rebuild Asgard from the ground up, he could always choose to leave the Earth behind and travel through the cosmos as his unworthy self. With nothing but an ax at his side and flying goats to carry him in his travels, Thor could explore further reaches of the cosmos, going even further than the Guardians of the Galaxy have. After all, it’s been hinted at that the MCU’s Phase 4 will focus on the cosmic side of things, and with Ragnarok already taking Thor to space, the character’s next adventure taking him deep into the spaceways makes sense. Could this be where Thor (finally) meets fellow warrior Beta Ray Bill, or where we finally see the female Thor make her MCU debut?
If the future is off the table, it would be interesting for a fourth solo Thor movie to flashback to his earlier adventures, like we’ve seen in the comics many times before. After all, Thor is thousands of years old, and he has seen mankind in its infancy. Yet, we know very little about those days, or about the adventures Thor experienced prior to the Avengers era. Perhaps a story that mixes both past and present could be in the cards?
If Phase 4 doesn’t feature a fourth solo Thor film, Hemsworth could still appear in a fashion similar to Robert Downey Jr.’s latest MCU appearances. If Thor is the last original Avenger to walk out of Infinity War, he could be the glue holding the next batch of movies together — the leader of the next generation of heroes, and mankind’s most powerful savior.
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