Jane Foster and Heimdall are shown in Valhalla in Thor: Love and Thunder’s post-credits scene. Could these dead characters return to the MCU?
It is a known fact that death is temporary in comics. This has been particularly true in the Thor films as well, where Loki has died many times, but even when he was officially killed in Avengers: Infinity War, the character was brought back to the MCU as a variant.
Thanos also killed Heimdall (Idris Elba) in the same scene when Loki died in Avengers: Infinity War.
In Thor: Love and Thunder, Jane Foster/Mighty Thor (Natalie Portman) was killed by cancer after using Mjolnir repeatedly, which prevented her body from adequately fighting the disease. And in the end-credits sequence, we see Jane being greeted by Heimdall as she arrives in Valhalla.
Is Jane really dead? Can she return from Valhalla?
The Thor: Love and Thunder post-credits scene does not reveal much about Mighty Thor and Heimdall.
Some of the MCU’s post-credits scenes serve to set up future adventures for characters, while others serve to show how a character’s story ends (such as the ironic homage to Iron Man in Avengers: Endgame).
Thor: Love and Thunder’s post-credits scene, which includes Idris Elba as Heimdall, suggests that the characters might not be dead after all.
Heimdall welcomes Jane Foster to Valhalla in Thor: Love and Thunder’s second post-credits scene, which might seem odd since she wasn’t technically Asgardian. Although the exact rules of Valhalla are not clear in the MCU, it is clarified that one must die in battle in order to enter Valhalla.
Despite her physical incapacity, Jane fought to have Gorr (Christian Bale) do the right thing. Moreover, even though she might not have been a god or an Asgardian, there is comic precedent for mortals being deemed worthy of Valhalla by dispersing into gold sparkles, as Odin did.
Jane Foster, Frank Castle, and Flash Thompson, all of whom appear in Marvel comics, have been able to enter the afterlife of Asgard—Valhalla.
There are different ways and degrees in which Natalie Portman’s Jane Foster could return to the MCU in the future, despite her death in Thor: Love and Thunder.
In Marvel comics, Thor, unable to accept Jane’s death, uses the power stored in Mjolnir, combined with Odin’s power (who meets Jane at the gates of Valhalla), to bring Jane back to life.
While this didn’t happen in the movie, the idea is presented in a similar way with Heimdall greeting Jane in place of Odin in the movie.
This could mean that Jane might be able to return from Valhalla with the right power source and strength of will, possibly with Heimdall’s help.
According to the comics, Jane also becomes a Valkyrie after losing Mjolnir, and since Valkyries help the lost souls find Valhalla, it is possible that Jane could return to the MCU as a Valkyrie and come and go as she pleases.
Jane could also return to the MCU in a less full-bodied sense. Thor is the last survivor of Asgard in one of the Marvel comics timelines and as such, becomes Valhalla itself. In that timeline, he is able to communicate with the dead Asgardians that inhabit the afterlife.
In Thor: Love and Thunder’s post-credits scene, the afterlife is notably quiet—only Heimdall is there, and Odin and Loki are both missing. A possible adventure could be brought forth by Jane and Heimdall finding an alternative method to return to Earth, bodily or otherwise.
About Thor: Love and Thunder
Thor: Love and Thunder is a MCU movie and the fourth installation in the Thor series. It is directed by Ragnarok’s director, Taika Waititi, and will show Chris Hemsworth and Natalie Portman reprising their roles as Thor Odinson and Dr. Jane Foster.
The movie will be based on The Mighty Thor comics in which Thor Odinson loses the ability to lift Mjolnir, and Jane Foster takes on the role of Mighty Thor. After the events of Avengers: Endgame, Thor teams up with The Guardians of the Galaxy for a short time, leaving Valkyrie as the ruler of New Asgard. But Thor returns to team up with Korg, Valkyrie and Jane’s Mighty Thor to take down Gorr the God Butcher (Christian Bale) – before he takes out all the gods in existence.
Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson return for Watiti’s second go, while Russell Crowe and Natalie Portaman join Taika’s project for the first time. The movie is out on July 8, 2022.
Source: Marvel
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