Jane Foster's (Natalie Portman) possible storyline in Thor: Love and Thunder can explain a mystery from Thor: Ragnarok: Why she broke up with the God of Thunder. Director Taika Waititi reunites with Chris Hemsworth for their second Marvel Studios collaboration following the success of their first team-up. Released in 2017, Thor: Ragnarok set up its titular hero's Avengers: Infinity War arc. Ragnarok also arguably saved the Thor franchise by taking it from Shakespearean drama to wacky comedy, and Thor: Love and Thunder can continue that evolution.

Thor: Love and Thunder marks Marvel Studios' first-ever fourth standalone film in an individual sub-franchise. The coronavirus pandemic delayed the project's production and release date, but now, it's all set for a July 2022 premiere. Plot details are still tightly under wraps, but when it was first announced at San Diego Comic-Con 2019, it was also revealed that the film will see the return of Portman as Jane Foster. This time, she'll be getting her own superhero persona as Mighty Thor. While people involved in the project haven't confirmed much, there's an expectation that it will mine inspiration from Jason Aaron's Mighty Thor series that ran from 2015 to 2018 for Jane's story.

Related: Thor: Why Love & Thunder May Have Dark World Flashbacks

In the comic book run from which Thor: Love & Thunder is drawing inspiration for Portman's character, Jane acquired all of Thor's superhero powers upon lifting Mjölnir after Thor was deemed unworthy. At that time, Jane was also suffering from breast cancer. However, she refused to subject herself to magical treatments, choosing to go through traditional chemotherapy instead. Sadly for her, every single time she transformed into Mighty Thor, her illness worsened when she transformed back into Jane. Apparently, the hammer purged her body of all toxins, including the radiation and chemotherapy from her medical treatment. Portman previously hinted that Jane's cancer storyline will factor into Thor: Love and Thunder, and assuming that this is the case, it could be the reason why she dumped Thor in the first place. Thor: Ragnarok revealed Jane broke up with Thor and the movie didn't expound on the matter, but it's possible that Jane decided to end her romance with Thor to spare him the agony of seeing her suffer because of her sickness.

Natalie Portman as Jane Foster

As revealed by the latest photos from Thor: Love and Thunder's additional photography in New York, it will feature some flashback scenes from Thor: The Dark World's era. In the images, Thor and Jane are seemingly on a casual date in the city. This checks out with the ending of the 2014 Alan Taylor film in which the God of Thunder refused the Asgardian throne and returned to Earth to reunite with Jane. From there, however, nothing is known about what happened in their relationship. Avengers: Age of Ultron included a throwaway line confirming that the couple was still together, but not much else after that. Assuming that Jane Foster learned of her cancer diagnosis around this point, it's possible that she decided to break things off with Thor so she could deal with it on her own. When they reconnect in Thor: Love and Thunder, it's possible he might learn about it, effectively filling in the narrative gap around their relationship.

Depending on how this revelation plays out, this could even lead to Thor and Jane getting back together despite their pre-Thor: Ragnarok breakup. Since she'll assume the role of Mighty Thor, it's safe to say that Jane will factor in the MCU beyond the events of Thor: Love and Thunder. And with no indication that the God of Thunder is retiring anytime soon, Marvel Studios could rekindle their romance and give them a more compelling love story.

More: Thor: Love & Thunder Can Complete Endgame’s Dark World Fix

Key Release Dates