Do I Need to Watch the Thor Movies Before Avengers: Doomsday?
You don't need all four. Chris Hemsworth is back as Thor in Avengers: Doomsday, but the short path is Thor: Ragnarok for the version of Thor the MCU settled on, and Thor: Love and Thunder for where he is now. The Avengers films fill in the rest.
Is Thor in Avengers: Doomsday?
Yes. Chris Hemsworth was among the cast Marvel announced in March 2025, listed as Thor. India Rose Hemsworth also returns as Love from Thor: Love and Thunder. She wasn't part of Marvel's main cast announcements, but she appears in Marvel's December 2025 Thor teaser for the film. What Thor actually does in the film hasn't been revealed, so be wary of anyone who claims to know.
Tom Hiddleston is in the cast as Loki too, so the brothers are both on the call sheet, for whatever that turns out to mean. Loki's own series matters far more for Doomsday than any Thor film; see do I need to watch Loki before Doomsday?
Why are there no Thor movies on Marvel's list?
Marvel's own guide to watching ahead of Doomsday on Disney+ doesn't include a single Thor film, and some fans weren't thrilled about it. Our guess at the reasoning: Thor's biggest turns happen in the team-ups. Marvel's official Countdown to Avengers: Doomsday podcast, for instance, recaps The Avengers, Age of Ultron, Civil War, Infinity War and Endgame. If you've seen those, you've seen most of Thor's arc.
Still, the solo films explain why Thor jokes the way he does, why he has the friends he has, and who Love is. Two of them earn the time.
Where Thor's story left off
Kept light, with the bigger beats left for you to watch:
- Thor: Ragnarok (2017) strands Thor on the junk planet Sakaar, where he's forced into gladiator fights and runs into Hulk, the Grandmaster and Valkyrie, while Hela threatens Asgard. Taika Waititi's comic tone became the default Thor from here on, and many critics consider it the best Thor film.
- Infinity War and Endgame put Thor through the wringer. Endgame leaves him in a very different place from where he started.
- Thor: Love and Thunder (2022) finds him looking for inner peace, then back in action with Valkyrie, Korg and Jane Foster, now the Mighty Thor, against Gorr the God Butcher. Reviews were mixed, mostly over tone and effects.
Spoilers for Thor: Love and Thunder: tap to reveal
Love and Thunder ends with Thor taking in a young girl named Love, who is listed in Doomsday's cast.
The verdict
If you've seen the Avengers films, watch Ragnarok and Love and Thunder and you're set. Ragnarok is the reset that the later films build on, and Love and Thunder is the only film that introduces Love and shows where Thor ended up. Skip Love and Thunder and you'll be fine on plot, but a little lost on who Love is.
Thor (2011) is worth it if you want the origin and the start of Thor and Loki's rivalry, which seems relevant with both in Doomsday. Thor: The Dark World is the one we'd cut first. It has its moments, mostly Loki's, but nothing in it is needed for Doomsday.
A minimal Thor path before Doomsday
- Thor (2011), optional
- The Avengers (2012)
- Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
- Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
- Avengers: Endgame (2019), or the Avengers Endgame: Encore re-release if you can catch it
- Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)
If you're short on time, drop Thor (2011) and keep the rest; if you're shorter still, Ragnarok and Love and Thunder alone will get you most of the way. The full list, including The Dark World, is in our Thor movies in order guide, and the wider Doomsday list is on what to watch before Avengers: Doomsday.
More verdicts: all “Do I need to watch it?” guides · full Doomsday prep list.
FAQ
Do I need to watch Thor: Love and Thunder before Doomsday?
It's the most useful Thor film for Doomsday, because it introduces Love and shows where Thor is now. You can follow the plot without it, but you'll miss who Love is.
Why doesn't Marvel's Doomsday list include any Thor movies?
Marvel hasn't explained it. Most of Thor's big moments happen in the Avengers films, which are on Marvel's list, so that's our best guess.
Can I skip Thor: The Dark World?
Mostly, yes. Nothing in it is needed for Doomsday, and it's the Thor film we'd cut first, though it does introduce the Aether, one of the Infinity Stones.
Who is Love in the MCU?
Love is a young girl introduced in Thor: Love and Thunder (2022), played by India Rose Hemsworth, Chris Hemsworth's daughter. How she ends up in Thor's life is part of the film's ending, so it's in the spoiler box on this page. She returns in Doomsday; Marvel's December 2025 Thor teaser shows her.