In his time as a member of Earth's Mightiest Heroes, the Avengers, Thor has come across threats from every corner of the universe. While Thor has battled many of Earth's villains, he has also faced powerful cosmic foes capable of stopping his enchanted hammer Mjolnir in its tracks. Yet despite all of his epic battles, Thor suffered one of his greatest defeats with the whisper of three simple words.

Thor’s defeat came in the pages of Original Sin, by Jason Aaron and Mike Deodato. In this crossover, the Watcher was found murdered with his eyes removed, a revelation that sparked a murder mystery that spanned the Marvel Universe. With his eyes being used as literal truth bombs, many of Earth's Mightiest Heroes discovered long-kept secrets. Amid the shock of these revelations, one group of heroes discovered a grand conspiracy involving Marvel’s original super-spy, Nick Fury. However, this discovery of Fury was just the beginning of the end for Thor.

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WHAT NICK FURY WHISPERED TO THOR

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Working under the title of the "Man on the Wall," Nick Fury removed hidden alien threats to Earth, regardless of the cost. Desiring the Watcher's knowledge, Fury took the alien's all-seeing eyes for himself. With his newfound knowledge and power, Fury was able to defeat any heroes who attempted to stand in his way. When facing Thor, Fury whispered something into the God of Thunder's ear that not only shocked him but left him unworthy to lift his hammer.

This event would serve as the catalyst for Jane Foster to claim the hammer, becoming the Mighty Thor, and for plenty of villains to rise in the aftermath. Following his defeat, Thor began to refer to himself as merely Odinson, wallowing in his loss and humiliation. It wasn’t until 2016's Unworthy Thor #5, by Jason Aaron, Olivier Coipel, Kim Jacinto and Pascal Alixe, that Thor finally revealed that the words Fury had said to him were simply, "Gorr was right."

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WHY GORR THE GOD-BUTCHER HATES THOR

Gorr the God Butcher Thor Esad Ribic - Marvel Comics

Created by Aaron and Asard Ribic in 2013's Thor: God of Thunder, the alien Gorr spent the majority of his life trying to survive the harsh elements of his world. Unfortunately, he was not able to prevent his family from dying of malnutrition. A lone wanderer, Gorr found a being that claimed to be their world’s god, begging for help to escape from a black substance that was consuming him. Thinking back to how his family had prayed for help to no avail, Gorr instead finished the job, crushing the god’s head, and allowing the black substance to merge with him. Gorr then acquired the powerful Necrosword and began a campaign of slaughtering the various gods of the universe as the God-Butcher.

To defeat Gorr, it ended up taking take three different versions of Thor from throughout his own timeline, including his future All-Father self. Although he was eventually victorious, Thor began to question his own actions and worthiness. As a hero, Thor had always lived to protect those around him. Yet, Gorr was proof that the gods, themselves, were not perfect beings. Being a god, Thor began to wonder if gods were merely a curse placed on every race beneath them. Fury’s words, based on the Watcher’s omniscient observation, only confirmed Thor’s fear that the gods were a blight on the universe.

While their effect eventually wore off, these three words destroyed the God of Thunder’s understanding of himself. After Fury’s comment, Thor no longer saw himself as a hero or an Avenger. Instead, he saw himself as one of the many gods that had failed to make any positive change in the worlds they ruled over. He was for a time unworthy of the title of Thor, not realizing for years that he had always truly determined his worthiness. 

GORR IN THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER

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After menacing Thor in comics for years, Gorr is now set to jump into the Marvel Cinematic Universe with director Taika Waititi's film, Thor: Love and Thunder, where he is reportedly set to be portrayed by Christian Bale. Along with Chris Hemsworth's Thor and Tessa Thompson's Valkyrie, this film is set to feature Natalie Portman's return as Jane Foster, who will wield Mjolnir for herself as Thor in the film.

If the movie's storyline adheres to the comics that precipitated Jane's turn as Thor, it may not be long before Gorr utters the three words that made the Odinson unworthy in live-action.

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