WARNING: This article contains spoilers for Marvel's Thor: Ragnarok, now in theaters nationwide.


Marvel Studios is famed for the deep cuts, Easter eggs and homages in its films, and director Taika Waititi's Thor: Ragnarok is certainly no exception. With such an extensive library of comic book source material -- not to mention nearly 10 years' worth of movies -- it's only natural that the filmmakers included plenty of sly references and callbacks for the enjoyment of observant fans.

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With Thor: Ragnarok now in theaters nationwide, we've scoured the sequel for its best nods, from the obvious visual influences of legendary Thor co-creator Jack Kirby to celebrity cameos to a far more subtle allusion to Walter Simonson's acclaimed comics run.

Stan Lee

thor: ragnarok haircut

If there's one element fans should come to expect in every Marvel Studios film, it's a cameo by legendary creator Stan Lee. With Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 establishing Lee as playing the same character in all of his Marvel Cinematic Universe appearances -- a talkative information for the ancient alien race of observers the Watchers -- it's feasible he could crop up anywhere, even on far-flung Sakaar.

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In Thor: Ragnarok, Chris Hemsworth's thunder god loses his long locks in preparation for his appearance in the gladiatorial arena. It's Lee's character who provides him with the close-cropped new hairdo.

Frog Thor

Early in the film, when Thor is recounting a number of mishaps that have occurred to him over the year, he mentions he was once turned into a frog. Sounds weird, right? Well, during Walter Simonson's influential run on Marvel Comics' Thor, Loki transformed the thunder god into a frog.

Taking it one step further, a comics character named Simon Walterson was also turned into a frog, but he became Throg, The Frog of Thunder.

The Play

When Thor first returns to Asgard, he's greeted by Odin -- but not really. If you've watched 2013's Thor: The Dark World, you'll know Loki (Tom Hiddleston) is masquerading as the missing All-Father and happily reigning over Asgard. Thor finds Loki, as Odin, watching a play that reenacts his "heroic death."

RELATED: The Quiet Importance of Karl Urban's Skurge in Thor: Ragnarok

The fun part is who has been cast in the roles of Thor, Odin and Loki: The thunder god is portrayed by Chris Hemsworth's brother Luke, Loki by Matt Damon, and Odin by Sam Neill, who previously worked with director Taika Waititi in the acclaimed film Hunt for the Wilderpeople.

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Jack Kirby's Influence

grandmaster's palace in thor: ragnarok

Much of the far-flung planet Sakaar, characterized as a dumping ground for the universe, is an homage to artist Jack Kirby, the co-creator of Thor, and his instantly recognizable style. From the architecture to the costume to the vibrant colors, Thor: Ragnarok is a love letter to Kirby's influential work. The Grandmaster's legion is dressed head to toe in Kirby-esque designs that seem to have leaped from the page to the screen.

Contest of Champions

contest of champions

The Grandmaster (Jeff Goldblum) loves pitting "contenders" against his champion, in what he aptly titles the Contest of Champions. You may be familiar with Marvel's mobile game of the same name, but it's origins run deeper than a game.

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The 1982 miniseries Marvel Super Hero Contest of Champions pitted many of the company's heroes against each other as part of a game conducted between the Grandmaster (played in the film by Jeff Goldblum) and a mysterious figure later identified as Death. Marvel has returned to the premise in comics, on animated television and, most recently, in a mobile video game called -- you guessed it! -- Marvel: Contest of Champions.

Infinity Gauntlet

Thanos Infinity Gauntlets

Eagle-eyed fans may have noticed there have been two Infinity Gauntlets floating around the Marvel Cinematic Universe: There's one shown in Odin's vault on Asgard in 2011's Thor, fully equipped with Infinity Stones, and the one wielded by Thanos in the post-credits scene of 2015's Avengers: Age of Ultron. That apparent continuity error is resolved in Thor: Ragnarok when Cate Blachett's Hela strolls through the vault and declares that Infinity Gauntlet, among other items, to be a fake.

Scrapper #142

tessa thompson in thor: ragnarok
Marvel Studios Thor: Ragnarok..Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson)..Photo: Jasin Boland..©Marvel Studios 2017

When Thor meets Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson) on Sakaar, she has ditched her name and is now referred to only as Scrapper #142. That's a nod to the character's 1971 Marvel Comics debut in Incredible Hulk #142. While the movie features a different version of the character than the comic, it's still a nice acknowledgement of her roots.

Grandmaster's Palace

grandmaster's palace in thor: ragnarok

Grandmaster's palace on Sakaar is actually built upon an enormous totem, which depicts homages to some fan-favorite Marvel Comics that general audiences may not recognize: Beta Ray Bill, the horse-faced alien who was deemed worthy to wield Mjolnir, and later received his own hammer, Stormbreake; the swamp monster Man-Thing; Ares, the Greek god of war and one-time enemy of Thor; and Bi-Beast, the two-headed android that's fought numerous heroes, including the Incredible Hulk.

Those characters have yet to appear in the Marvel Cinematic Universe in their proper forms, but this totem would seem to confirm their existence.

The Revengers

When Thor approaches Valkyrie to join him, Loki and the Hulk to save Asgard, he suggests the team will be called the Revengers, because they're seeking revenge in one form or another. While on the service this seems like little more than Thor's awkward play on the Avengers, the Revengers actually existed, in different forms, in Marvel comics. Most recently, however, the name was used by a group that included Wonder Man, Anti-Venom, Captain Ultra, Goliath, Atlas and Century.

Thor's Eye

While battling Hela, Thor loses control of the fight and the goddess of death makes a statement by slicing out one of his eyes. While this sounds gruesome, it's both a nod to Thor's now-deceased father Odin and and to writer Jason Aaron's recent run on Marvel's Thor comics, in which a future version of the thunder god is missing an eye.

Point Break

thor: ragnarok

In 2012's The Avengers movie,  Robert Downey Jr.'s Tony Stark quips that Thor looks like Patrick Swayze's character in the 1991 film Point Break. There's a callback to that scene in Thor: Ragnarok when the thunder god attempts to gain access to Hulk's crashed quinjet on Sakaar.

Puny God

avengers movie

Remember that hilarious moment in 2012's The Avengers when the Hulk throws Loki around by his ankle and calls him a "puny god"? Of course you do. Thor receives similar treatment in Thor: Ragnarok when he and the Hulk face off on Sakaar. It comes as Thor tries to make the Green Goliath revert to Bruce Banner by reenacting the steps Black Widow used in Avengers: Age of Ultron.


In theaters nationwide, director Taika Waititi’s Thor: Ragnarok stars Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Mark Ruffalo as Hulk, Tessa Thompson as Valkyrie, Tom Hiddleston as Loki, Cate Blanchett as Hela, Jeff Goldblum as The Grandmaster, Idris Elba as Heimdall, Anthony Hopkins as Odin and Karl Urban as Skurge.