Eternals

## Gallery

***Eternals*** is a 2021 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics race of the same name. Produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, it is the 26th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). The film was directed by Chloé Zhao, who wrote the screenplay with Patrick Burleigh, Ryan Firpo, and Kaz Firpo. It stars an ensemble cast including Gemma Chan, Richard Madden, Kumail Nanjiani, Lia McHugh, Brian Tyree Henry, Lauren Ridloff, Barry Keoghan, Don Lee, Harish Patel, Kit Harington, Salma Hayek, and Angelina Jolie. In the film, the Eternals, an immortal alien race, emerge from hiding after thousands of years to protect Earth from their evil counterparts, the Deviants.

In April 2018, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige announced that a film based on the Eternals had begun development, with Ryan and Kaz Firpo hired to write the script in May. Zhao was set to direct the film by late September, and was given significant creative freedom with the film, which resulted in filming on location more than previous MCU films. Zhao re-wrote the screenplay, which Burleigh was later reported to have also contributed to. Principal photography took place from July 2019 to February 2020, at Pinewood Studios as well as on location in London and Oxford, England, and in the Canary Islands.

*Eternals* premiered in Los Angeles on October 18, 2021, and was released theatrically in the United States on November 5, as part of Phase Four of the MCU. The film has grossed over $161 million worldwide. It received mixed reviews from critics, with praise centering on its themes and visuals, and criticism aimed at its exposition, pacing, runtime, and lack of character development.

## Synopsis

In 5000 BC, ten superpowered Eternals—Ajak, Sersi, Ikaris, Kingo, Sprite, Phastos, Makkari, Druig, Gilgamesh, and Thena—are sent by the Celestial Arishem to Earth to fight the invasive Deviants. Over the millennia, they protect humanity from the Deviants but are not allowed to interfere in human affairs. They kill the last of the Deviants in the 1500s, and the group's opinions differ about their continued responsibilities and their relationship with humankind. They spend the next five hundred years mostly separated from each other, waiting for Arishem to send them home.

In the present day, Sersi and Sprite live together in London. After Sersi was left by her partner Ikaris over five hundred years earlier, she now has a relationship with human Dane Whitman, who works at the Natural History Museum. The trio is suddenly attacked by the Deviant Kro, with Ikaris arriving and chasing the creature away. Realizing the Deviants have returned, they prepare to reunite with the remaining Eternals. They travel to South Dakota only to find that Ajak, their leader, had been killed by Kro before he went to London, gaining her healing abilities as a result.

Sersi is posthumously chosen by Ajak as her successor, granting her the ability to communicate with Arishem, who reveals that the mission of the Eternals was not to fight the Deviants but to prepare Earth for the "Emergence". Arishem explains that for millions of years, the Celestials have been planting their seeds on populated planets for new Celestials to be born, with the Deviants sent by them to destroy the apex predators of each planet to ensure the development of life. However, when the Deviants evolved and began hunting the planet's native populations, the Celestials created the Eternals to cull them. Arishem explains that Earth has reached the necessary population for the birth of the Celestial Tiamut, which will result in the Earth's destruction.

Having learned to love humanity, the Eternals reassemble and decide to prevent the Emergence. They reconvene with Kingo, Thena, Gilgamesh in Australia before heading to Druig's residence in the Amazon rainforest, where they are attacked by Kro and the Deviants. Kro kills and feeds on Gilgamesh, gaining a fully humanoid form and ability to speak, before fleeing. After cremating Gilgamesh, they visit Phastos, who proposes for Druig to put Tiamut to sleep using his mind control powers amplified by the Uni-Mind, a connection between all the Eternals. Ikaris reveals he was informed of the Emergence by Ajak centuries before and fed her to the Deviants to prevent her from stopping it six days prior, and flees along with Sprite. Kingo also leaves the group as he does not wish to face Arishem.

After Makkari locates the place of Emergence at the foot of an active volcano in the Indian Ocean, the Eternals battle Ikaris and Sprite before being attacked by Kro, who is killed by Thena. Druig knocks out Sprite, and the Eternals work together to subdue Ikaris. Phastos activates the Uni-Mind, and Sersi uses her matter transmutation abilities to turn Tiamut to marble. A guilt-ridden Ikaris flies into the Sun and Sersi then uses the remaining of the energy from the Uni-Mind to turn Sprite into a human.

Thena, Druig, and Makkari depart on their spaceship, the *Domo*, to find other Eternals, while Sersi, Phastos, Kingo, and Sprite remain on Earth. Dane professes his love for Sersi and is about to reveal a secret about his family history when she, along with Phastos and Kingo, are remotely dragged into space by Arishem, who is displeased with their treason but elects to spare humanity if the Eternals' memories show that humans are worthy of living. He vows to return for judgment before disappearing into a singularity, taking them with him.

In a mid-credits scene, Thena, Makkari, and Druig are visited by the Eternal Eros, the brother of Thanos, and his assistant Pip the Troll, who offer their help. In a post-credits scene, Whitman opens an old chest inherited from his ancestors that contains the legendary Ebony Blade when an unseen person questions him whether he is ready for it.

## Cast

* Gemma Chan as Sersi
* Richard Madden as Ikaris
* Kumail Nanjiani as Kingo
* Lia McHugh as Sprite
* Brian Tyree Henry as Phastos
* Lauren Ridloff as Makkari
* Barry Keoghan as Druig
* Don Lee as Gilgamesh
* Harish Patel as Karun
* Kit Harington as Dane Whitman
* Salma Hayek as Ajak
* Angelina Jolie as Thena
* Harry Styles as Fred Styles

Additionally, the Deviant Kro is voiced by Bill Skarsgård, while David Kaye voices the Celestial Arishem. Haaz Sleiman and Esai Daniel Cross portray Ben and Jack, Phastos' husband and son, respectively; and Zain Al Rafeea portrays a villager who comes across the Eternals upon their arrival on Earth. Harry Styles appears in the film's mid-credits scene as Eros / Starfox, the brother of Thanos, while Patton Oswalt voices his assistant Pip the Troll; Oswalt previously portrayed the Koenig brothers in the Marvel Television series *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.* (2013–2020). Mahershala Ali has an uncredited voice cameo appearance as Blade in the post-credits scene, ahead of starring in his own film.

## Release

*Eternals* had its world premiere at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on October 18, 2021, and was screened at the Rome Film Festival on October 24. The film was released theatrically in many European countries on November 3, and in the United States and the United Kingdom on November 5. In September 2021, Disney announced that the film would have an exclusive theatrical release for a minimum of 45 days. *Eternals* was previously set for release on November 6, 2020, before it was shifted to February 12, 2021, and then to the November 2021 date, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It is part of Phase Four of the MCU.

### Censorship

In May 2021, a Chinese state media report excluded *Eternals*, as well as *Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings*, from its list of upcoming MCU films releasing, which *Variety* noted "added to rumors" that the films would not be released in China, especially since Zhao had become "an unexpected *persona non grata*" in the country after she was scrutinized by Chinese netizens over her remarks in a 2013 interview with *Filmmaker* magazine, in which she described China as "a place where there are lies everywhere". By September 2021, *Deadline Hollywood* reported it remained "an open question" if the Chinese government or Zhao would attempt to "rehabilitate" the situation, but it "seems likely" the film would not release in China following the country's response to *Nomadland* as well as *Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings* likely not releasing in the country either following backlash to comments made by star Simu Liu in 2017.

The film was not released in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman due to the depiction of a gay couple. However, theaters in the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Lebanon and Egypt will be showing an edited version of the film which is missing all the love scenes. Angelina Jolie criticized the countries' decision to ban the film, saying: "I'm sad for [those audiences]. And I'm proud of Marvel for refusing to cut those scenes out. I still don't understand how we live in a world today where there's still [people who] would not see the family Phastos has and the beauty of that relationship and that love. How anybody is angry about it, threatened by it, doesn't approve or appreciate it is ignorant." Lebanese actor Haaz Sleiman, who played Phastos' husband Ben in the film, also voiced the same reaction towards the matter: "They stood their ground and said, 'Nope, we are not going to compromise the integrity of our film.' It made these Arab countries looks so ignorant and pathetic. I have no respect for those governments. They have displayed to the world that they are not only a disgrace to humanity, but to God. Hopefully this will inspire the Saudi people, the Kuwaiti people and the people in Qatar to fight back."

## Reception

### Box office

As of November 7, 2021, *Eternals* has grossed $71 million in the United States and Canada, and $90.7 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $161.7 million. The film's opening weekend earned $161.7 million globally, which was the second-largest worldwide opening weekend in the COVID-19 pandemic for a Hollywood film, of which IMAX contributed to over $13.6 million.

#### Pre-sale tickets and projections

Advanced ticket sales for *Eternals* were estimated to be $2.6 million in its first 24 hours, outpacing those for *Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings* ($1.4 million) and *Black Widow* ($2 million) during the same time frame, while AMC Theatres had the largest first day sales of 2021 for the film. In November, Fandango reported that pre-sales for *Eternals* were second-largest of 2021, behind *Black Widow*. In October, *Boxoffice Pro* initially projected that the film would earn $82–102 million within its opening weekend, and around $210–280 million in total domestic box office. At the end of the month, *BoxofficePro* modified their projections to $67–92 million for the film's opening weekend, and around $165–215 million in total domestic box office, due to mixed early critical reception. According to *Deadline Hollywood*, *Eternals* was expected to earn $75 million within its domestic opening weekend, and around $150 million globally.

#### Performance

In the United States and Canada, *Eternals* earned $30.7 million in its opening day, which included $9.5 million from Thursday night previews, marking the third-largest opening day of the pandemic, behind *Black Widow* and *Venom: Let There Be Carnage*. Its opening weekend earned $71 million, making it the top film of the weekend. IMAX accounted for over $7.6 million of the weekend. This marked the fourth-largest opening weekend of the pandemic. The domestic opening weekend gross was lower than various pre-release projections. *Deadline* attributed this to the film's overall mixed reception from critics and audiences.

Outside of the North America, *Eternals* earned over $90.7 million within its opening weekend from 46 markets. It was number-one in nearly all of these markets. The international opening weekend gross had exceeded various pre-release projections. IMAX contributed to $6 million of the opening gross, from 58 countries. The film scored the largest opening of the pandemic in Italy, Brazil and Hong Kong. In Korea, *Eternals* earned $14.4 million, marking the largest debut for a Hollywood film during the pandemic. As of November 7, 2021, the film's largest markets are Korea ($14.4 million), the United Kingdom ($7.1 million), France ($6.7 million), Mexico ($5.7 million) and Australia ($5 million).

### Critical response

The review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported an approval rating of 48%, with an average rating of 5.6/10, based on 297 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "An ambitious superhero epic that soars as often as it strains, *Eternals* takes the MCU in intriguing—and occasionally confounding—new directions." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 53 out of 100, based on 60 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". It is the lowest-rated MCU film on both websites and the first installment to be classified as "rotten" on Rotten Tomatoes. Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B" on an A+ to F scale, the lowest grade for an MCU film, while PostTrak reported 78% of audience members gave it a positive score, with 60% saying they would definitely recommend it.

Charlotte O'Sullivan of the *Evening Standard* gave the film four out of five stars, describing it as "lavish", "ambitious", and "more divisive". She praised the fight sequences as "astounding, beautifully paced and crammed with detail", and the whole cast as "fabulous" but felt Chan was a "bit wooden". Robert Abele of *TheWrap* praised the film's cinematography and felt that "there's an earnestness to the operatic stakes in *Eternals* that somehow helps fuse what's physically spectacular and philosophical about it". Oliver Jones of the *Observer* stated that the film was "full of wonder and romance and fueled by an agenda and audacity all its own", and felt that "one of the most impressive aspects of the Eternals is how the culturally representative team's identities play into the theme and story in powerful and essential ways". Owen Gleiberman of *Variety* was disappointed over Zhao's missing filmmaking style that shaped her films *The Rider* (2017) and *Nomadland* (2020) to "embrace the straight-up expository conventionality of Marvel filmmaking", but he felt that the film was a "squarely fun and gratifying watch" despite its long runtime, and a "very standard" superhero film. He found the Eternals a "winning prototype of a more dynamically inclusive superhero world". Moira Macdonald of *The Seattle Times* gave the film three out of four stars, feeling that it "has its flaws; in a nutshell, it's too long... it's got some pretty slow spots midfilm and it's desperately in need of a bit more wit", but adding that "it does have is a palpable, artful mood; this is a movie full of superheroes who spend time thinking and feeling, and of special effects that aren't just zippy but often delicately elegant". She described *Eternals* as "a different kind of superhero movie; not to everyone's taste, but made for us all".

Three critics gave the film three out of five stars: Linda Marric of *The Jewish Chronicle* described it as "a mishmash of well-meaning, yet jarringly verbose and bafflingly incoherent nonsense which is only just about saved by some half decent performances"; Nicholas Barber of *BBC Culture* felt that Zhao's direction of the film "would have been reasonable to expect it to prompt slack-jawed wonder rather than the grudging appreciation of an efficient, workmanlike job"; and Clarisse Loughrey of *The Independent* said that it "strives for the same expansive soulfulness" as *Nomadland* "but discovers there's room enough only for the occasional burst of it". Brian Truitt of *USA Today* gave the film 2.5/4 stars; he felt that "*Eternals* looks unlike any other Marvel movie and is perhaps the most welcoming for MCU neophytes in forever" due to the utilization of Zhao's "penchant for naturalistic environments", but wrote that the narrative "struggles to juggle its many subplots and tries to do too much in its hefty two hours and 37 minutes". Mark Kennedy of the Associated Press gave the film a similar rating, criticizing its dialogue and fight scenes, but praising its visual effects and Nanjiani's performance that he felt would have "a lot of superheroes standing around in cool suits squinting a lot" without him. Shirley Li of *The Atlantic* criticized the film's use of exposition but felt that "Zhao's delicate examination of her characters outshines *Eternals*' duller and more convoluted moments".

Three critics gave the film two out of five stars: Robbie Collin of *The Daily Telegraph* felt that it was "constantly engaged in a kind of grit-toothed authenticity theatre, going out of its way to show you it's doing all the things proper cinema does, even though none of them bring any discernible benefit whatsoever to the film at hand"; Kevin Maher of *The Times* felt that it had "a strange self-sabotaging energy at the heart of this landmark blockbuster"; and Steve Rose of *The Guardian* felt that it was "not exactly boring—there's always something new to behold—but nor it is particularly exciting, and it lacks the breezy wit of Marvel's best movies", further describing it as being "like coming into *Avengers: Endgame* cold without having seen any of the preceding installments". K. Austin Collins of *Rolling Stone* felt that the film was "good at telling us where to look, at impressing us with its manufactured sense of grandeur", but added that it lacked "any credible sense of what's actually worth seeing". Justin Chang of the *Los Angeles Times* compared the film to *The Tree of Life* (2011) and *The Old Guard* (2020), feeling a "depressing realization that you've just seen one of the more interesting movies Marvel will ever make, and hopefully the least interesting one Chloé Zhao will ever make". Brian Lowry of CNN felt that "[w]hether this millennia-spanning tale of immortals hiding in plain sight on Earth can repeat history will serve as a referendum on the studio's muscle, especially because the movie's structural flaws offset its stunning visuals and strong performances". Kyle Smith of *National Review* was more critical in his review of *Eternals*, describing it as "one of the dumbest, cheesiest, most trite, and least human" of the MCU films.

The mixed reception took some commentators by surprise, given the MCU's positive track record and the acclaim of Zhao's previous work. Richard Newby of *The Hollywood Reporter* wrote that "much of the criticism of Kirby's work", which was divisive for its subject matter and relationship to the wider Marvel Universe, "has followed Zhao in her adaptation." Newby compared the divisive response to that of Zack Snyder's DC Extended Universe films *Man of Steel* and *Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice* (2016), writing that those films and *Eternals* share "a deconstructive approach to superheroes and force them to question their purpose in the world, through meditative and melancholy narrative beats, and a tragic yet hopeful ending." This approach, Newby felt, subverted critics and audiences' expectations, which made them review the film more harshly.

## Trailers

A total of three trailers have been released for the film.