Natalie Portman feels 'really cool' playing 'Thor' role
"Thor: Love and Thunder," which opens July 8, is Natalie Portman's third time playing Jane Foster. Credit: Getty Images / Amy Sussman
Fans of Natalie Portman might have the actor's kids to thank for her participation in the next "Thor" movie.
In an interview with People magazine, the Jericho-raised Portman said that her son Aleph, 11, and daughter Amalia, 5, encouraged her to reprise her role of Thor's ex-girlfriend Jane Foster in the new movie "Thor: Love and Thunder," which opens July 8.
"I feel like it's the phase of my career where I'm really trying to just impress my kids," Portman, 41, said.
She added that it made her feel "really cool" to have her children see her dressed in a cape when they visited the set. "You know, it's very rare that my kids are like, 'Please go to work!' Usually, it's quite the opposite," the Oscar winner added.
Portman, who is also a graduate of Syosset High School, previously played Foster in "Thor" (2011) and "Thor: The Dark World" (2013). She did not appear in the third film in the franchise, "Thor: Ragnarok," in 2017. In "Love and Thunder," Portman's character is back on the scene and even dresses like Thor (for a pleasingly surprising reason).
Chris Hemsworth again plays the title role in the movie, which features a number of heavy hitters including Chris Pratt, Bradley Cooper, Melissa McCarthy, Christian Bale, Matt Damon, Vin Diesel and Russell Crowe.
