Thor: Love and Thunder was a completely wild ride and one of the funniest movies in the history of the MCU. There was also a lot of important things that happened in this film though, including two very big post-credits scenes. If you haven’t seen the film yet, now would be a good time to stop reading and go buy a ticket.
Thor: Love and Thunder spoilers ahead!
Thor: Love and Thunder follows the typical Marvel format of one mid-credits scene and one post-credits scene. However, while the latter is typically just a gag in Marvel movies, this one seems to be rather important to the plot and possibly the future of the MCU.
The Son of a God
The mid-credits scene really goes the distance (get it?) by introducing none other than Marvel’s Hercules. We knew from the trailers for the film that Thor would be meeting with Zeus in this film so Herc was certainly on fans’ radar.
A lot of MCU fans who may not be familiar with the comics may be wondering what’s up with his outfit though. While most may be familiar with that tan and gold look the character sports in the beloved Disney animated film, Marvel’s version of the character has always sports a green and gold scheme and this scene nails it.
So what does it mean? Hercules has been an Avenger in the comics and even fought side by side with Captain America in the superhero civil war. Here though, it appears Zeus is setting Herc up to be an antagonist in the future, urging him to exact revenge for his own humiliation at the hands of Thor. That wouldn’t be completely new either, as Hercules and Thor have come to blows in the comics as well.
And then there’s the element that will most likely have fans talking more than anything else. He’s here! He’s there! He’s… well, I’ll skip the fruity language but the MCU’s Hercules is none other than Roy Kent himself, Brett Goldstein. The Ted Lasso star shocked Marvel fans everywhere with his MCU debut and a lot of fans of the popular Apple TV series are very excited to see what he will bring in the future.
Valhalla
One of the moments of the film that likely surprised a lot of MCU fans is the death of Jane Foster. The Mighty Thor just made her first appearance and she’s already gone?! Well, the final post-credit scene leaves the door open for a potential return for the new hero.
The final scene sees Jane arrive at the gates of Valhalla, the afterlife for Asgardians, where she is greeted by Heimdall. Yes, Heimdall returns! Albeit very briefly. It appears Jane is being welcomed into this Asgardian paradise where she can live out eternity, and not the wish-granting one.
As you can see in the image above, Jane visited the gate of Valhalla in the comics as well. Spoiler alert, she’s back on Earth these days. We can’t say for sure if the MCU will follow the comic arc, but it’s certainly a possibility that she could find a way back to the land of the living in the future. And if that’s true for her, is it possible for others as well? This could be a path to reintroduce characters like Heimdall, the Warriors Three, the Valkyries or even Odin. We’ll just have to wait and see.
Thor: Love and Thunder is in theaters now. Check out Mack’s review of the latest Marvel film.