Cate Blanchett (Lord of the Rings) is back as the Asgardian goddess of death, Hela, in the second season of Marvel’s hit animated anthology series What If…?. According to TVLine, the premise of her episode asks instead of being banished to Hel, what if she was dealt a different punishment? Odin banishes Hela to Earth, stripped of her magic and godlike abilities. In this unfamiliar land, Hela stumbles upon the Ten Rings, mystical and cosmic objects that have unfathomable power. The episode will witness Hela become powerless, capturing her first interaction with characters from Shang-chi, such as the Mandarin,
In the trailer, we get a glimpse into what the episode has in store, from Hela landing on Earth, aka Midgard, to her training with the rings, to Hela battling all of Asgard. Episode seven will take an interesting twist on the journey of the goddess of death as she traverses through Earth and Asgard, encountering allies and foes alike, and reclaims what is rightfully hers.
According to TVLine, series writer Matthew Chauncey (Ms.Marvel) stated, “AC Bradley and I both love Ragnarok and Hela specifically….but something that always struck us was how her dad did her kind of dirty in that movie compared to how he treated his sons.”
“Think about it: When Thor starts acting a fool in his first movie, Odin sends him on a sort of cosmic time-out to Earth. But his daughter? Nope, he just locks her in Hel for all eternity and throws away the key,” Chauncey continued via TVLine. “It got us thinking: How much of Hela’s villainy is a product of her own nature and how much of it was created by the way her father treated her? What would happen if instead of locking her in Hel, he banished her to Earth to teach her a lesson?”
“What If… Hela Found the Ten Rings?” promises an action-packed, emotionally charged journey that redefines what we know about these iconic characters. Marvel fans are sure to mark their calendar for December 28, 2023, in order not to miss out on the thrilling story behind Hela.