While Thor is one of the core members of the MCU's Avengers, and while he is the strongest of them all, each of his first two solo movies was a sort of letdown (although they did introduce Loki, who is the best villain of the shared universe). Will things change with Ragnarok?

Marvel ditched the previous directors of the franchise (Kenneth Branagh and Alan Taylor) and brought in Taika Waititi, best known for What We Do in the Shadows. And this might be yet another stroke of genius on the studio's part - the Russo brothers were known for their comedies and now Captain America: The Winter Soldier is considered the best MCU movie (except for the first Iron Man, of course).

But there isn't too much known about Thor: Ragnarok. Yeah, Hulk will be there and probably Hela too - other than that, everything is just one big rumor. So, what do we really know? What are the biggest questions regarding this (most likely) final installment of the Thor franchise?

What will happen with Jane Foster?

Jane Foster, portrayed by Natalie Portman, is in no way a favorite character of the fans. She was present in the first two movies, but other than that"¦Essentially, since she is Thor’s main connection with Earth, she is one big loose end. She was mentioned in Avengers: Age of Ultron, but just during a comedic moment. So, in the bigger shared universe, she doesn't have an overly essential role.

Thor: The Dark World played with the idea of killing her. However, in the end, she did receive a happy ending (no pun intended), with Thor basically leaving Asgard for her sake. Will Thor: Ragnarok do the same thing? Or will Jane Foster be used as a plot device to make Thor enter into berserker mode and obliterate all his enemies?

One thing is certain: Natalie Portman signed for three movies and she was displeased to hear that Patty Jenkins was fired from her position as director of Thor: The Dark World. So maybe she will indeed die (for good, unlike many other MCU characters) while trying to help her boyfriend.

If that happens, we can expect even more rage from the female fans of the franchise, since her role would only be to provide the male hero with a strong enough reason to prevail.

Whether she lives or dies, Taika Waititi has a seemingly impossible task: to make Jane Foster's role count, while also ending her story arc.

Will Asgard be destroyed?

Ragnarok is, basically, the end of the world - in this case, it is the destruction of the Gods and their home city. But will this happen in the MCU as well? Will the audiences finally witness a Marvel flick in which the stakes are so high that not even the Gods can prevent the destruction brought by a Mad Titan?

Given what director Taika Waititi has said, we have no idea - he only said that a different kind of humor will be brought to the franchise. And this isn't too reassuring. Can there be anything comic in the disappearance of an entire race? We guess not"¦

But Marvel can still surprise us and do the unthinkable - destroy the city that stood guard over the nine realms. And kill most of the gods along with it. One of the most recent rumors (which, for one reason or another, didn't fly with the fans) says that Thor will fail in his quest and that, by the end of Thor: Ragnarok, he will find himself imprisoned somewhere in the Universe. If Marvel will take on this path, then it will prove that nobody is safe in the MCU any longer. And it is about time they did that.

The destruction of Asgard could play an important role, and not just in the MCU. Some of the remaining gods (and warriors, for that matter) might take refuge on Earth, thus spicing things up for the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (and, maybe, the other series as well, either existing or planned).

At the same time, Asgard can survive - the studio certainly sees the potential for quite a few additional stories to be told. And this wouldn't be the first time the studio sacrificed a movie for the sake of others to come. Of course, they can continue even if the city is destroyed, since Ragnarok is cyclical and the gods always rebirth (though we wouldn't want that, since we are tired of deaths which aren't what they should be).

Speaking of which"¦

What happened with Odin?

The end of Thor: The Dark World saw Loki standing on the throne, thus implying that Odin has left the MCU. Furthermore, director Alan Taylor said that the All-Father is certainly dead. But there is a problem in here.

Even in this shared continuity, Odin has been depicted as one of the most powerful beings in the Universe, way above even Thor. If he is indeed that powerful, can Marvel settle for an off-screen death for him? We guess not - and even if the director said something, we can bet that we haven't heard the last of Anthony Hopkins' character.

So the biggest possibility would be that Odin has been imprisoned by Loki (and some other powerful ally), or even banished to Earth (as was Thor in his first solo flick). If this is the case, it would be an interesting twist which might help develop the character - from a position of ultimate power, Odin would have to deal with the problems of everyday life and try to escape.

Of course, this would also bring another fake death - which, as said before, is not a welcomed event. So what will it be? Is Odin dead? Or will he make another appearance in Thor: Ragnarok?

Is Cate Blanchett Hela or Enchantress?

Marvel is known for attracting the biggest stars in Hollywood - Cate Blanchett is the latest actress to be rumored to have a role in the MCU. And rumor has it that she will be one of the main villains of Thor: Ragnarok, which will be a first in this shared universe. Thus far, Marvel has only presented male villains, with one exception - even if Nebula can be said to have had a secondary role.

And having Cate Blanchett as a major villain can only mean one thing: that she will be Hela, the ruler of Hel. According to most of the websites, this also means that she will be an ally of Loki, even if her character's origins will be changed. Furthermore, she will be the reason for Hulk’s appearance in the movie.

Another rumor, though, says that she is actually Enchantress, another Loki ally from the comics. This rumor is based on a very old interview with Tom Hiddleston, who said that it would be nice if Loki's relationship with Enchantress were explored in the movies as well.

Either way, Cate Blanchett is expected to play a villainous role, with her character most likely having played an important part in Odin's removal from the throne. In any of these cases, it would be a waste of talent if Marvel decides to kill off her character after just one movie - after all, Marvel is well-known for offing villains without a second thought.

So, no matter what character she plays, we hope that she'll be back for the Infinity War.

Is there any stopping Loki?

As said, Loki is the best villain of the MCU - he was so good in the first Thor film, and in the first Avengers film, that the studio decided to rewrite his role in Thor: The Dark World and make him a major character in that installment as well. And, despite the fact that his story-arc was ruined in the end, he was still the best thing about that particular flick.

So the obvious question is what will happen with Loki in Thor: Ragnarok? Will he meet his end? Or will he find a way to survive, just like he did before?

With the audiences' reaction being off the charts as far as Loki is concerned, it’s hard to believe that Marvel and Disney will let him go, even if this is indeed the final installment of the Thor franchise. Most likely, he will reveal himself (once again) as a lieutenant of Thanos and he will be brought to serve the Mad Titan during the Infinity War.

We don't actually see Thor doing anything that could kill Loki. In the way he was depicted up until now, Thor seems like a wuss, always wanting to reunite with his brother, even if it means his own destruction. And we definitely don't see Loki locked up again.

Having him as a main villain in Thor: Ragnarok is certainly a good thing. Having his story-arc ending in the Infinity War is even better.

Is Thor: Ragnarok the end of the franchise?

Yes it is - or, at least, this is what we say. The Thor series has been the weakest of all of the Marvel solo franchises. Furthermore, Marvel hasn't moved forward with a fourth film for any of its main Avengers (we know that only Iron Man counts in here thus far). So yeah - Thor: Ragnarok is the last time when Chris Hemsworth will be all by himself in the MCU.

An even bigger question is whether or not Thor will die at the end of the movie - this could be a twist, especially if Loki survives.

The rumors say that he'll miss the Infinity War, being imprisoned or something. Others say that he'll make it out alive, though weakened. Lastly, others say that Thor himself will die in the end - if that happens, we do hope that he won't be brought back (yes, there is a problem with death becoming meaningless in the MCU).

There is no certainty to any of these rumors - after all, the script isn't finished just yet. So everything goes!

Will the Mad Titan appear?

Thanos is the one character who has unified the MCU. Without him popping up at the end of the first Avengers, we wouldn't have had a shared universe in the first place.

But is he so powerful, even without the Infinity Stones? We have no idea - thus far, he’s only cameoed. So maybe Thor: Ragnarok will be the first time he'll display his powers. If we follow the comics, we already know how a confrontation between him and Thor (aided by Hulk) will end. But this is exactly the point: to show the heavy-hitters of the Avengers completely obliterated by the Mad Titan.

Most recently, director Taika Waititi said that Thor: Ragnarok is the chance to actually make Thor shine. Also recently, Josh Brolin said that he will meet with Marvel pretty soon in order to talk about the Mad Titan's trajectory in the MCU. We don't believe that this is a coincidence, and we believe that Thanos is Loki's puppeteer once again.

Furthermore, he did say that he'll do it himself, that he'll search himself for the Infinity Stones. And, as it happens, one of them is in Asgard. The math is pretty simple in here - have Loki distract the God of Thunder for a bit and then have Thanos appear in all his glory and chase away what hope is left.

You can't say you aren't excited at the thought of seeing Hulk and Thor engaging in a losing fight against Thanos.

Will there be other villains, as well?

A long time ago, we believed that Surtur was a must in a Thor: Ragnarok movie. Now, we aren't so sure, even if Loki is meant to free him (in the comics, of course). The comics also feature the giant wolf god Skool, the Frost Giants, and, basically, every baddie in existence (even the dead will be brought back to life by Hela). We can bet that none of these (with the exception of Hela) will be present.

Instead, we believe that Thanos will appear, together with his most feared lieutenants: the Black Order. In the comics, the Black Order is a team of supervillains commanded by Thanos himself: Black Dwarf, Corvus Glaive, Ebony Maw, Proxima Midnight, and Supergiant. We are certain that all of them will be present.

It is essential for these characters to be introduced prior to the Infinity War - if they prove themselves in battle against Thor and Hulk, the audiences will certainly believe that they are more than able to pose a threat to the combined forces of the Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy, Inhumans, and all the other superheroes in the MCU.

Speaking of which"¦

Will the Guardians of the Galaxy cameo?

This is yet another big question, even if it refers to a simple cameo. In the first Guardians of the Galaxy, Star Lord says that he wants to save the galaxy, because he is one of the fools living in it. Seeing that Thanos is a bigger threat than Ronan, the team will certainly want to help the Asgardians.

Most likely, they won't make it in time, though. Which means that they will turn towards Earth, having heard that the superheroes have been successful when defending against the Mad Titan's Chitauri army.

There is also another rumor, which says that an actual Avenger (other than Hulk) will cameo in Thor: Ragnarok. It is believed that Scarlet Witch will die in Captain America: Civil War, which will prompt Vision to leave Earth. Knowing that he has an Infinity Stone on his forehead, he will certainly try to find out more about it. And he will definitely want to ask Thor about it.

Just like with the Guardians, he will most likely arrive in Asgard too late. Will he meet Star Lord and company there? This is a possibility that should be taken into account.

Is Thor: Ragnarok actually Planet Hulk and Hulk vs.?

Now let's talk about the giant green elephant in the room. For long it was rumored that Thor: Ragnarok will actually be a Hulk vs. Thor movie, in which the Green Goliath is possessed in some way by Loki. Afterwards, it was revealed that Thor: Ragnarok will loosely adapt the Planet Hulk storyline.

These two are certainly more than enough for a full movie. Hulk is possessed, he battles superheroes on a distant planet, he battles Thor who frees him, they both defeat Loki and Hela, and they are both defeated by Thanos. It works pretty well, doesn't it?

You don't need Surtur when Hulk is more than a threat"¦

This could also open up another possibility. What if the Hulk loses it during the Infinity War and, just like in the follow-up for Planet Hulk, he turns against the heroes? What if World War Hulk is adapted next, after the Mad Titan's defeat?

Source for the Featured Image: Comic Vine