Thor's hammer makes a return appearance in a new Avengers: Infinity War set photo. While that film will reunite all of the Avengers for the third time onscreen together too, Chris Hemsworth's God of Thunder will return one more time before that in this year's Thor: Ragnarok. Directed by Taika Waititi, Ragnarok promises to be a massive, comedic detour from what the previous two Thor movies were, sending Thor, some returning cast members, along with a whole array of new characters on a grand adventure across space.

One of the more jaw-dropping moments from the Thor: Ragnarok teaser trailer as well, was the moment when fans saw Cate Blanchett's villainous Hela, destroy Thor's hammer, Mjolnir, with her bare hands. There was no further explanation for the moment or teases of how exactly the God of Thunder tries to compensate for the loss of his most prized possession, but it effectively established Hela's danger and dominance over the film's heroes in a matter of mere seconds.

However, while a previously-released piece of concept art from Infinity War had made it look like Mjolnir's destruction would be permanent, a new set photo makes it look as though the opposite might be true. Posted by The Russo Brothers through their official Instagram page, the image shows Joe Russo directing while filming at the Durham Cathedral, which was used in the Harry Potter movies. But standing behind Russo is a Priest holding the legendary hammer. With a caption that only reads "Worthy," there isn't much explanation for the hammer's presence on the set either. Check out the photo for yourself down below:

Worthy. A post shared by The Russo Brothers (@therussobrothers) on

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The location itself looks like it could fit in well with the previously-established Asgardian aesthetic, though, that doesn't explain why there would be a Priest on the set, especially if it's an actor in costume. And with no explanation for why and how Mjolnir is there, still completely intact, it's hard to know where and how this moment in the film factors into the actual story of Infinity War.

There is the possibility that this is a flashback, with Thor heading back in time thanks to the powers of Benedict Cumberbatch's Doctor Strange, in an attempt to recover Mjolnir before it was broken by Hela, but that's about as speculative as it gets.  This also seems to go against the first piece of concept art that was released for Infinity War, which saw Thor fighting alongside Bradley Cooper's Rocket Raccoon, while wielding a weapon that did not look at all like Mjolnir. So at this point, it's impossible to know what exactly is happening in this photo, or why Mjolnir is included in it - but with a little less than a year to go until Avengers: Infinity War hits theaters, there's still plenty of time to speculate and try figuring it out.

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Source: The Russo Brothers

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