Written by Joy Lyn Parohinog Francisco
Thor: Love and Thunder dropped a subtle Wolverine Easter egg in its trailer. For years, actually more than a decade now, fans have wanted to see Wolverine snikt his way into the MCU.
With the opening of the multiverse, that is an even bigger possibility than ever. In fact, Thor: Love and Thunder planted a Wolverine seed.
Eagle-eyed Michael Roman of the Everything Always YouTube channel floated a new theory about Thor: Love and Thunder. Apparently, adamantium, the material most people know that fortifies the skeleton of Wolverine, is not from Earth.
One of the weapons we see in the Thor: Love and Thunder footage is Zeus’ Lightning Bolt; we first see the weapon wielded by Zeus (Russell Crowe) and then Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson). According to Roman, the weapon consists of material that created Wolverine’s adamantium.
Thor: Love And Thunder Trailer Hides Wolverine Easter Egg
Image: Marvel Studios
In Marvel Comics, adamantium is an indestructible steel alloy. Adamantium took its name after Adamantine from Greek mythology. There was a metallurgic accident that led to Dr. Myron McLain’s creation of the vibranium-steel alloy during his WWII research. Captain America’s shield was made from the vibranium-steel compound. As McLain tried to duplicate the process, he ended up creating true adamantium in the ’60s.
Roman believes Zeus’ seemingly metal Lightning Bolt is Adamantine-based. Furthermore, since Valkyrie is fighting Gorr the God Butcher (Christian Bale) with it later in the trailer, Zeus may have actually perished. And, by Gorr’s hands no less. King Valkyrie now wields the Lightning Bolt and perhaps brings it back to Earth by the end of the film.
Perhaps as part of a global agreement, somehow this will lead to Damage Control retrieving the Lightning Bolt for study. Even further, they may try to replicate it, thus leading to the discovery of adamantium.
Finally, where adamantium is, eventually Wolverine will be.
Of course, this will also require a narrative on how the mutants come into play in the MCU. Some fans speculate that the destruction of the Infinity Stones actually triggered the X-gene or that the blipped humans came back with the mutant DNA.
Thor: Love And Thunder Trailer Hides Wolverine Easter Egg
Image: Marvel Studios
Also, there is the theory that the Chaos Magic that the Scarlet Witch used in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. The amount of Chaos Magic used to destroy all Darkholds in all the universes may have caused the mutated gene. This will also provide the social distinctions, leading to discrimination between mutants and non-mutants in the MCU.
Sources revealed that Wolverine arrives as Weapon X in the MCU. This can follow his origin with the convenience of lost memory. Governments have made it clear that there has to be control over individuals with superhuman abilities. They’ve done it to Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) when he became the Winter Soldier.
Even Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) becoming Captain America and the research that made Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) into the Hulk. They were experiments to become enhanced controllable weapons. Who knows how many more experiments there were?
The more people appear to become superhuman, there will be a growing concern among those without the elevated abilities. Some will celebrate it, others will fear it. By nature, people always have varying ways in treating their fears. This will be the new reality that the MCU faces after Thor: Love and Thunder.