For one of Marvel Studios' biggest upcoming
movies, Eternals is keeping a pretty low profile.
If you're still in the dark on the MCU's newest
superhero team, here's everything you need
to know about them, and how their film fits
into Phase 4 — from its far-reaching connections
to existing characters to its diverse and
exciting cast.
Eternals was officially announced on July
20th, 2019 at San Diego Comic-Con, and Marvel
wasted no time in confirming a few details
about the movie — namely, that it's scheduled
to premiere on November 6th, 2020.
Although the film was only just confirmed
at Comic-Con, Marvel fans had been hearing
news about an Eternals film being in the works
since at least the spring of 2018.
By 2019, word began getting out about which
actors were in talks to star in the film,
and before the film was even announced at
Comic-Con, production was already in its early
stages in London.
Of course, November 2020 may feel like a long
wait, but Marvel fans will be able to tide
themselves over with the release of Black
Widow on May 1st, 2020 and The Falcon and
the Winter Soldier on Disney Plus in the fall
of that year.
"I'll do my best."
"That's why it's yours."
Even long-time Marvel fans might not be too
knowledgeable about exactly who the Eternals
are, or the exact details of their role in
the Marvel Universe.
After all, they only first appeared in a relatively
limited run of comic books in the mid 1970s
and '80s.
Their storyline was revived for a miniseries
by Neil Gaiman in 2006, however, which brought
the characters into the modern Marvel universe.
So who are the Eternals, and what is their
significance to the Marvel universe?
According to Marvel lore, an alien species
called the Celestials visited Earth millions
of years ago and began carrying out experiments
on early humans.
One off-shoot of these experiments were the
Eternals, beings that looked like humans yet
possessed abilities like flight, mind reading,
and an almost unbelievable level of strength
and endurance.
Their superpowers and resilience made them
essentially immortal and indestructible.
But the Celestials' experiments were also
responsible for the creation of the Deviants,
another group of humanoids who were burdened
with genetic mutations and grotesque appearances.
Humans mistook the Eternals for gods, and
the Eternals often clashed with the Deviants
to protect humanity.
However, the Eternals weren't unfailingly
perfect, either — as will likely be depicted
in the film, they can often be misled and
instigate conflicts among themselves.
At this point, the MCU has introduced a countless
number of characters from the original Marvel
comics.
But have fans been introduced to any of the
Eternals yet?
Well, kind of.
In the comics, Thanos, who destroyed half
of all life in the universe and was finally
defeated by the Avengers in Endgame, was actually
an Eternal.
And yeah, that might seem a little confusing
— especially since the Eternals were supposed
to be protecting humanity, not wiping it out,
and tend to be able to physically blend in
among humans, too.
But Thanos was a bit of a wildcard, because
he also possessed a recessive Deviant gene,
explaining his appearance.
His status as an outlier, however, means you
can reasonably expect that most of the characters
in Eternals will be entirely new to the MCU.
In fact, given that the MCU has never shied
away from streamlining their characters' dense
histories for the screen, it's entirely possible
that Thanos may not even come up.
Then again…
"I am inevitable."
Eternals actually shares a connection with
one other film in the MCU.
In Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 2, Peter
Quill's father, Ego, tells Peter that he is
a Celestial, and is portrayed as possessing
god-like abilities.
Ego is millions of years old, and is also
able to manipulate the matter of the universe
around him.
By the time we meet him in Guardians Volume
2, he has managed to form a whole planet around
himself, but he can also inhabit a human body.
"I don't know where I came from, exactly.
First thing I remember is flickering, adrift
in the cosmos, utterly and entirely alone."
If you've seen Guardians Volume 2, you'll
know what happens next — and if you haven't,
then let's just say that Ego isn't quite as
benevolent as he first appears.
It's also probably safe to say that Celestials
clearly aren't an all-powerful force for good
in the universe.
There's a good chance they're going to show
up once more during Eternals too, and judging
by how they've come across so far, there's
a good chance they could be driving the movie's
primary conflict.
Unfortunately for spoiler-hungry Marvel fans,
pretty much everyone involved with Eternals
is keeping the movie's exact details largely
under wraps.
As of right now, the only real clues anyone
has about the plot come from a few vague comments
from studio president Kevin Feige after Comic-Con.
He told ComicBook.com:
"It will be a story that will introduce you
to this incredibly eclectic group of immortals,
they're the focus of the story.
[...] The Celestials go back a long way.
We know a little bit about them.
The Collector told us about Celestials, Knowhere
is the severed head of a Celestial.
Ego was involved with them, but we learn much
more about their agenda and what they've been
up to."
If you want to form your own predictions about
what might happen in the film this early on,
you'll have to turn to the original comics.
There's a good chance the plot will be inspired
by the more recent Neil Gaiman miniseries,
in which the Eternals have assumed normal
human identities and forgotten their origins.
Sources have also told The Hollywood Reporter
that the film will include a love story between
Ikaris and another Eternal, Sersi — but
at this point, this is all just speculation.
As of right now, what could actually happen
is anyone's guess.
The cast of The Eternals is rounded out with
A-listers and rising stars alike, and while
big names alone can never guarantee a movie's
success, it seems like Marvel have given fans
a lot to look forward to nonetheless.
For example, Richard Madden, who rose to fame
playing the ill-fated Robb Stark in Game of
Thrones, has signed on to play Ikaris.
Ikaris is known as the "Prime Eternal" in
the comics, meaning that he is more powerful
than the other Eternals.
He is fueled by cosmic energy, and can move
at superspeed and communicate telepathically.
His sheer physical strength and agility also
makes him a formidable opponent in combat.
In fact, there's little that Ikaris can't
do, and there's a good chance that Eternals
will be centered around Ikaris as one of the
main protagonists.
If it seems like Madden's name has been everywhere
lately, you're not imagining things.
He starred in the critically-acclaimed British
TV series Bodyguard, and also played John
Reid in Rocketman, the musical biopic of Elton
John's life.
"Get in the studio and make some music or
don't.
I don't care."
From the looks of it, being killed off in
Game of Thrones was one of the best things
that could ever have happened to his career.
When word got out that Angelina Jolie was
in talks to appear in The Eternals, the prevailing
rumor was that she would be signing on to
play the Eternal Sersi.
But at Comic-Con, it was confirmed that Jolie
was actually playing a different Eternal,
Thena.
In the Marvel Universe, the city of Athens,
Greece was reportedly built for Thena, not
the goddess Athena, as is the case in our
universe.
In Marvel's history, human beings confusing
Thena and Athena bred hostility between the
Eternals and the Olympic gods of Greek mythology,
eventually leading to an all out war.
In Gaiman's Eternals comics, Thena works as
a researcher at Stark Enterprises and starts
remembering her past as an Eternal through
a series of recurring nightmares.
Jolie is definitely the biggest name attached
to this film right now, and she's ecstatic
to be part of the MCU.
She told The Hollywood Reporter:
"I'm going to work ten times harder.
I know what we all need to do, we have all
read the script, we all know what the task
ahead is, and we know what you deserve, so
we are all going to be working very, very
hard."
Madden and Jolie joining the MCU is definitely
big news, but the Eternals casting getting
the most positive buzz right now is Lauren
Ridloff's role as Makkari.
You may know Ridloff from her previous work
on The Walking Dead, or her former title as
Miss Deaf America, which she held from 2000
through 2002.
Ridloff was born Deaf, and as one of the few
Deaf actors in Hollywood, she has always wanted
to see more representation for her community
on screen.
Now, she has made film history as the first
deaf superhero in the MCU.
Her casting represents a major change from
the original comics — Makkarri was actually
a male character, and he wasn't written as
deaf.
But the reception to this change has been
positive so far, and fans are looking forward
to seeing Ridloff's portrayal of Makkari,
an Eternal with the power of super speed.
At Comic-Con, Ridloff was asked about her
feelings on playing Makkari and becoming Marvel's
first Deaf superhero.
She replied:
"I do have a son.
And he asked me after he read Greek mythology,
he was reading through that, and he's like,
'What does honor mean?'
This.
This is what honor means.
I'm so honored to be here."
Overall, the rest of the cast of The Eternals
is pretty stacked.
Kumail Nanjiani will be playing Kingo, an
Eternal who rarely uses utilizes his actual
superpowers.
Instead, he spent years studying with the
Samurai in Japan and now wields a sword with
the ability to cut through any material.
Brian Tyree Henry will be appearing as Phastos,
who basically develops all of the high-tech
gear and equipment that the Eternals need.
Salma Hayek has signed on to play Ajak, who
often has to serve as a diplomat between the
Eternals and the Celestials.
This is because Ajak was originally the only
Eternal with the ability to directly communicate
with their creators.
Don Lee is taking on the role of Gilgamesh,
an Eternal who has fought alongside the Avengers
on numerous occasions, but has been largely
overlooked until now.
Lia McHugh, the youngest member of the main
cast, is playing Sprite — as the name suggests,
she's a mischievous trickster whose pranks
have always gotten her into trouble.
New cast members will undoubtedly be announced
as production continues.
Director Chloe Zhao will be at the helm of
Eternals.
Zhao is a newcomer to the world of Marvel.
In fact, she's relatively new to Hollywood
in general — she directed her first feature
film, Songs My Brothers Taught Me, in 2015.
She's best known for her 2017 contemporary
Western film The Rider, which follows a young
cowboy after an accident nearly kills him
and brings an end to his riding career.
The Rider was nominated for both Best Feature
and Best Director at the 33rd Independent
Spirit Awards.
Zhao's history as an indie filmmaker makes
her an interesting choice for director.
This film definitely represents a new artistic
direction for Zhao, but considering her numerous
accolades, there's no doubt that the movie
is in good hands.
Cousins Matthew and Ryan Firpo teamed up to
write the script.
The two have one film, Ruin, in pre-production
already, but a release date is yet to be announced,
and this movie will most likely be their feature
writing debut.
In short, it's clear Eternals is filled with
fresh talent — both behind and in front
of the camera.
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