Hela (Marvel Cinematic Universe)

Note: ''This article is about the incarnation of Hela from the Marvel Cinematic film series. The mainstream version can be found here: Hela (Marvel).''

"Darling, you have no idea what's possible."

- Hela to Thor "I'm not a queen or a monster. I'm the Goddess of Death!"

- Hela most famous quote

Hela Odinsdottir is the main antagonist of the 2017 film Thor: Ragnarok. She is the first born daughter of Odin and the elder sister of Thor and Loki Laufeyson who is bent on taking over Asgard with her own army of Berserkers at her side and rebuilding it in her own image.

She is portrayed by two-time Academy Award winning actress, Cate Blanchett, who also played Irina Spalko, Marissa Wiegler and Lady Tremaine.

Origins
Hela started out as the firstborn child and sole daughter to Odin and Frigga. She served her father as an executioner and leader of the Einherjar in Odin's plot to conquer the Nine Realms. However, as the years go by, Hela start to develop her own ambitions in overthrowing her father and taking control of Asgard to herself. Having noticed his daughter's ambitions, Odin was forced to fight Hela and defeat her by banishing her to a realm called Hel, where his life force would be the only lock to keep her from escaping. Hela also tried to break free from Hel, which prompted Odin to send female Asgardian warriors called the Valkyries to stop her. The plan was a success, though it was at the cost of all the Valkyries, except for one.

Odin then proceeded to write out Hela from all of Asgardian history, even replacing the murals of her conquests with those of his other children.

Return to Asgard
Several years following the deaths of Frigga, Malekith and the Dark Elves, Thor battled against the fire demon Surtur, who foretells him of an event called Ragnarok that will destroy all of the Asgardians once his crown is united with the Eternal Flame within the city. Undaunted, Thor defeats Surtur and takes his crown, believing that he has averted Ragnarok.

However, Odin dies of old age after being found by Thor and Loki, but not before he tells them about the existence of Hela to them. Following Odin's death, Hela was able to escape from Hel before confronting Thor and Loki, demanding her brothers to bow down before her. Thor and Loki angrily refuse before the former throws his powerful hammer (the Mjølnir) at Hela, but unfortunately, she catches the hammer and destroys it with an instant crush. A shocked Thor and Loki then attempt to escape to the Bifrost Bridge, but Hela catches up and easily throws both of them out into space, leaving them to crash-land at a nearby planet named Sakaar (ruled by the notorious Grandmaster).

With both Thor and Loki defeated, Hela took the opportunity to take over Asgard by eliminating the Einherjar (the elite army of Asgard) along with the Warriors Three (Volstagg, Fandrall, and Hogun) and resurrects her dead pet Fenris Wolf and her own army (known as the Berserkers) to cement her new role as Queen of Asgard. She also took the opportunity to appoint a downtrodden Asgardian named Skurge to serve as her Executioner.

With her takeover of Asgard complete, Hela plans to use the Bifrost Bridge to expand the Asgardian empire through the universe, but Hemidall (the sentry of the Bifrost Bridge) steals the sword controlling the bridge before hiding away with the rest of the Asgardian citizens to form a resistance against Hela's reign. A furious Hela then orders Skurge along with her troops to take down the resistance so that she can use Hemidall's sword to activate the bridge and proceed with her plans.

Final Battle and Death
Eventually, Hela and the Berserkers managed to pinpoint the Asgardian resistance's location before engaging into a fight against them. However, the battle's tide is turned when Thor and Loki returned after defeating the Grandmaster's forces and escaping Sakaar (with the help from the Hulk and several gladiators) on one of the Grandmaster's giant ships. It also turns out that one of the gladiators named 142 happens to be the sole Valkyrie who previously survived Hela's attack during her previous escape from Hel. The Hulk and 142 then proceed to fight against Fenris, Skurge, and the Berserkers while Loki and the gladiators evacuated the remaining Asgardians on the ship.

With the defeat of Fenris and the Berserker army faltering, Thor engages into a final battle against Hela, but he loses an eye and receives a vision from Odin that only Ragnarok can defeat Hela. It was then Thor realized that the true meaning of Asgard meant for protecting its citizens, not its land. Deciding to let Surtur bring about Ragnarok, Thor, 142 and the Hulk distract Hela while Loki takes Surtur's crown and unites it with the Eternal Flame, causing Surtur to be reborn as he eventually engulfed the portion of Asgard. Realizing that she's been distracted and witnessing the heroes and the remaining Asgardians escaping on the giant ship, an angry Hela attempts to stop them by pinning the ship with her spikes, but a repentant Skurge sacrifices himself to allow their escape by taking down Hela's remaining Bersekers (who were attempting to board the ship and attack the Asgardian citizens) before being stabbed to death by Hela with her throwing knives. Being left at the mercy of Surtur, a terrified Hela is forced to watch as Surtur proceeded to destroy all of Asgard despite her efforts to destroy Surtur by impaling the fire demon with a multitude of spikes, and she is incinerated to her death along with her remaining Berserkers in the process.

With Asgard destroyed and Hela along with her forces vanquished, Thor (taking over as the new King of the Asgardians) decides to build a new Asgard for his fellow people on Earth.

Family

 * Buri † - Paternal Great-grandfather
 * Bor † - Paternal Grandfather
 * Odin † - Father turned Enemy
 * Frigga † - Possible Mother
 * Thor - Brother turned Enemy and Attempted Victim
 * Loki - Adoptive Brother turned Enemy and Attempted Victim

Allies

 * Fenris † - Companion
 * Berserkers † - Subordinates

Enemies

 * Surtur - Killer
 * Asgardians - Allies turned Enemies and Attempted Victims
 * Einherjar † - Former Subordinates turned Enemies and Victims
 * Valkyries † - Former Subordinates turned Enemies and Victims
 * Brunnhilde/Valkyrie/142 - Attempted Victim
 * Heimdall
 * Warriors Three † - Victims
 * Volstagg †
 * Fandral †
 * Hogun †
 * Skurge † - Ally turned Enemy and Victim
 * Revengers
 * Bruce Banner/Hulk
 * Sakaaran Rebels
 * Korg
 * Miek

Trivia

 * The mainstream Hela was written as Loki's daughter, but this incarnation of Hela is rewritten as Odin's daughter, making her Thor and Loki's older sister.
 * Hela is the first female main antagonist in a Marvel Cinematic Universe film franchise.
 * Charlize Theron was considered for the role of Hela before Cate Blanchett was cast.
 * Cate Blanchett's portrayal of Hela received critical acclaim which was considered by the critics as the best villain within Thor Trilogy.