Beta Ray Bill Replaces Thor as Founding Avenger

One of the Avengers franchise’s biggest retcons of all time is now official lore, as Marvel rewrites over six decades of mainstream continuity. The alteration changes Earth’s Mightiest Heroes on a fundamental level, going right back to their origin.

In a preview of Al Ewing and Pasqual Ferry’s The Mortal Thor #1, Marvel confirms that Thor has been erased from Avengers continuity and replaced by Beta Ray Bill. The issue depicts two pundits debating on TV, spelling out that Thor and all other Asgardian heroes are now considered fictional, while the alien hero Beta Ray Bill is remembered as a founding Avenger. Crucially, it’s confirmed that Bill’s own lore is now separate to Thor’s.

In the recent Immortal Thor #25, Thor was killed by Loki and reborn in human form as Sigurd Jarlson. Meanwhile, the Rainbow Bridge was broken, severing all connections – past and present – between Asgard and Earth. The issue teased that Beta Ray Bill had taken Thor’s place in Avengers lore, but didn’t confirm how the Earth/Asgard split would work on the ground level.

Marvel Confirms Beta Ray Bill’s Separation from Thor Lore

The New Founding Avenger Has a Fresh Backstory

Introduced in Thor #337 by Walt Simonson, Beta Ray Bill is an alien warrior enhanced with experimental cybernetics. The hero quickly allied with Thor and even proved himself worthy to wield Mjolnir, later being given his own enchanted hammer Stormbreaker by Odin. Fans were therefore confused when he replaced Thor as a founding Avenger, since with Asgard excised from Marvel lore, a lot of Beta Ray Bill’s backstory goes with it.

This preview of The Mortal Thor confirms that Beta Ray Bill is now an alien influenced by Asgardian mythology, rather than someone with direct experience of it as reality. It also confirms that Asgardian myth is still known by the denizens of Earth, but is considered fiction while other living mythologies are still known to be real, for example longtime Avengers member Hercules.

Thor Has Forgotten His Own History with the Avengers

Only Loki Seems to Remember His Brother’s True History

As far as the Marvel Universe is concerned, Thor was just excised from 60 years of Avengers comics, with Beta Ray Bill taking his place as a team founder and (presumably) in many of the team’s most iconic stories. It’s also revealed that in his mortal form as Sigurd Jarlson, Thor doesn’t remember his own past adventures, and only knows the Avengers as celebrity heroes, the same as any other average Joe in the Marvel Universe.

Loki – accompanying Thor on Earth as a kid nicknamed ‘Lucky’ – is seemingly the only person on Earth who remembers the Avengers’ true history; a fitting detail, since the team first formed to fight against his schemes. With the other Asgardians locked off from returning to Earth, Loki may be Thor’s only hope for reclaiming his legacy and history.

Immortal Thor/Mortal Thor are acting as a parallel story to Ewing and Joe Bennett’s Immortal Hulk, which ran to #50 issues. That makes it likely that the new status quo will last for at least two years, with Thor forgotten by his oldest allies and replaced in their affections by one of his most dedicated friends. The Mortal Thor will continue to explore how Avengers lore has been reshaped by excising and replacing Thor, but for now, fans have a much better idea of what it means for Thor to be replaced by Beta Ray Bill.

The Mortal Thor #1 is coming August 27, 2025.

First Appearance

Journey into Mystery

Alias

Thor Odinson, Eric Masterson, Kevin Masterson, Beta Ray Bill, Thordis, Throg, Red Norvell, Jane Foster

Alliance

Avengers, Warriors Three, Thor Corps, God Squad

Race

Asgardian, Human

Franchise

Marvel