"Thor: Ragnarok" Gets Official Release Date, Plays Crucial Part of Marvel's Phase 3; End of Days or Another Notable Villain Seen

By Staff Reporter

May 26 2015, 02:54 AM EDT

News is out that "Thor: Ragnarok," the third instalment of the Norse God in the Marvel cinematic universe, will be out on July 28, 2017.

According to the official Marvel website, Chris Hemsworth will don the red cape and wield the mighty hammer Mjölnir for the third time as he faces his toughest challenge yet.

The subtitle, "Ragnarok", means end of days in Norse Mythology. It is a catastrophic event involving a great battle that ultimately kills important gods including Odin, Tyr, Heimdallr, and even Thor.

In the recent "Avengers: Age of Ultron," this event was actually shown when Thor was under the spell of the Scarlet Witch. But does the term "Ragnarok" in the third instalment of the franchise really points to the destruction of worlds?

Thor: Ragnarok may refer to the dreaded event, or it may mean another thing. In the latest Avengers movie, there was a gag on the inability of the other members of the Avengers to lift the hammer. Thor said only the worthy is allowed to carry the hammer.

Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr.), Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) and Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) were all unable to lift the thunder god's hammer. Captain America (Chris Evans), however, made the hammer bulge, which gets a funny subtle reaction from Thor.

In the later part of the movie, Vision (Paul Bettany), effortlessly carries the hammer and hands it to Thor. Tony Stark's assumption is that since Vision is not human, the rules don't apply to him.

If you follow the Marvel Comic franchise, there are actually several other characters that were able to carry the hammer. First, there is the Alien Beta Ray Bill, who was able to carry the hammer in an issue of the Thor comic book franchise back in 1983.

Captain America was also able to carry the hammer in an issue published back in 1988. Wonder Woman, Hulk, Superman, Magneto, Loki, and even Deadpool were able to carry the hammer in certain issues of the Thor comic book franchise.

But one notable character that could connect to the "Thor: Ragnarok" title is in fact, Ragnarok, who is the cyber-clone of Thor in an alternate universe. According to an article from the Business Insider, this character may come into play in the upcoming third instalment of the Thor movie in 2017.

Marvel's Kevin Feige said that the third Thor movie is an important part of "Phase 3." He said they plan to take Thor to another level. Thor Ragnarok movie will pick up where they leave the Norse God in "Avengers: Age of Ultron."