By now, just about everyone has seen the Thor: Ragnarok trailer in which Queen Goth Cate Blanchett (playing the literal Princess of Hel, Hela) crushes Thor’s hammer Mjolnir in her hands like it’s nothing. Thor then somehow ends up captured by Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson) and taken to an arena owned by The Grandmaster (Jeff Goldblum) where he is shorn of his blonde locks, given a decidedly non-hammer weapon, and sent to fight his co-worker Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) for the amusement of the masses.
Beyond that, the trailer indicates Hela will be taking over Asgard, though where her father* Loki (Tom Hiddleston) stands on the issue remains hidden. However, anyone who thought Mjolnir was gone forever from the Marvel Cinematic Universe — all none of you — will be surprised to discover the sentient piece of Uru is back in Avengers: Infinity War. The superhero team-up is currently filming in Atlanta, GA and directors Anthony and Joe Russo took to Instagram with a familiar weapon.
*Please let Marvel integrate this hilarious piece of Norse lore into the film.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BUuC1qzgRZH/
But how can this be!? The easiest answer is probably the correct one: magic. Over the years, Mjolnir has been damaged and outright destroyed. Each time it is mended anew again. So it’s entirely plausible that Thor will simply glue his hammer back together, metaphorically speaking. Or there’s always the “It wasn’t Mjolnir” theory. Perhaps Hela destroyed the Thunderstrike, meaning Beta Ray Bill is headed towards the MCU continuity. Or perhaps Loki made imitations of Thor’s hammer for reasons known only to himself. It wouldn’t be the first time.
Whatever the case, expect Thor to reunited with his beloved Mjolnir before the credits roll at the end of Thor: Ragnarok.