Natalie Portman Won't Be Back For Thor: Ragnarok
Surprise, surprise...
You know, they say being a superhero or a God-like alien hero is a good thing, so why is it that so many of them struggle to establish proper relationships?
Tony Stark's long term girlfriend evaporated into the ether between films because he wouldn't give up his suit making habit, Cap's first girlfriend died of old age after watching decades for him, Ant-Man is divorced, and Vision's attempt to romance Scarlet Witch got him smashed through several floors of the Avengers facility. Everyone else seems to be devoid of any personal relationships, aside from Hawkeye, who has now presumably had to abandon his happy home life because he came out of retirement and ended up on the world's Most Wanted list.
Thor can now be added to that list, as he's been abandoned by girlfriend and occasional character in her own right Jane Foster. The news comes via Kevin Feige, who spoke to Empire to confirm, with Creed star Tessa Thompson apparently set to come in as a new love interest. After confirming she wouldn't be back, he was asked why:
"Many reasons. Many of which are in the film so you will see that. There are only a couple of scenes on Earth in this movie. 80 to 90 percent takes place in the cosmos.
if you're surprised by this, you probably haven't been paying attention. There've long been rumours that Portman was unhappy with her role in the MCU, and it's not at all surprising. She's been relegated to a sidekick, rather than being a strong character in her own right, and there was something particularly problematic about the way Thor and Iron Man compared their girlfriends as trophies in Age Of Ultron.
It's in no way ironic that both of them have now up and left the heroes.
To be honest it's not a terrible thing: the dynamic between Portman and Hemsworth was never all that great, and hopefully this will allow Thompson's potential character to change things up positively.
Thor: Ragnarok is set for release on November 3, 2017.