Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige has commented on the possibility of a sequel to 2021’s Eternals, but his update means several unanswered questions and burning mysteries may never be addressed in the MCU. Despite being led by Academy Award-winning director Chloé Zhao and featuring a millennia-spanning storyline, Eternals became one of the MCU’s most divisive movies following its Phase 4 release. More recently, Eternals has garnered a more positive, retrospective response, but the movie’s poor box office performance and divisiveness have prompted disappointing comments from Marvel Studios.
In July, Kevin Feige revealed to Inverse that “there are no immediate plans for Eternals 2.” For many, this is a shame, as Eternals unlocked a vast corner of the MCU that has barely been explored. Feige goes on to note that there will be “an acknowledgment of some of those events” in upcoming MCU projects, specifically Tiamut’s appearance in Captain America: Brave New World, but there are many more unanswered questions from Eternals that are now running the risk of never being resolved.
There are no immediate plans for Eternals 2 . There are, and I think you’ve seen maybe in a trailer we’ve released recently, an acknowledgment of some of those events. Certain giant things came out of the ocean.
10What Consequences Will Tiamut’s Death Have On The Cosmos?
The Eternals Killed The Celestial Tiamut To Stop The Emergence
While 2025’s Captain America: Brave New World is expected to finally address the statue of the Celestial Tiamut rising from the ocean, the bigger consequences of the Celestial’s demise in Eternals may never be known. Eternals revealed that Celestials grow in the center of selected worlds, feeding off the energy created by the growing population. Their birth destroys their seed planet, but allows them to create many more worlds and bring life to billions of other lifeforms. Tiamut’s death could have huge implications for the MCU’s cosmos.
The Eternals grew to love humanity over the course of their time on Earth, prompting them to kill Tiamut and stop his emergence instead of allowing the Celestial to be born. There have been many theories concerning Tiamut’s significance to Captain America: Brave New World’s narrative and the future of the MCU, but there has been no mention of the negative implications of Tiamut’s death. The universe may be without important figures who would have been born had Tiamut emerged, but it seems this will never be confirmed.
9How Will The Celestial Arishem Pass Judgment On Earth & Humanity?
Arishem Promised To Judge Humanity’s Worth At The End Of Eternals
Tiamut wasn’t the only Celestial seen in Eternals, as the Celestial Arishem also had a prominent role in the Phase 4 movie. As the Eternals’ point of contact, Arishem revealed the Eternals’ purpose to Sersi, prompting her to work against her cosmic overlords and save humanity. Killing Tiamut was a treasonous event for the Celestials, which forced Arishem to take surviving Eternals members Sersi, Phastos, and Kingo into space, promising to pass judgment on humanity to see whether their survival was worth the death of a Celestial.
It’s currently been three years since Arishem appeared in the skies over London, and there has been no mention of his appearance or his judgment since then. This could have teased the development of an adaptation of Marvel Comics’ A.X.E.: Judgment Day event from 2022, but Feige’s comments suggest this story is dead before it even began. Nevertheless, Arishem is still judging the Earth, and this shouldn’t be forgotten in the MCU, though it’s unclear when it might be addressed.
2022’s A.X.E.: Judgment Day featured a battle between the Avengers, the X-Men, and the Eternals, spurred on by the reveal of the mutant resurrection protocols and the Celestial Progenitor’s judgment of humanity.
8Will Dane Whitman’s Family History Be Explained?
Dane Whitman Has A Complex Family History In Marvel Comics
One of the biggest criticisms of Eternals was that the characters felt underdeveloped, as many new heroes were introduced all in one go. As well as the ten members of the Eternals, Kit Harington also debuted as Dane Whitman, initially seen as Sersi’s human boyfriend, who has a very mysterious backstory. Whitman makes many cryptic comments about his unusual family history throughout Eternals, but the exact nature of Whitman’s family is never actually explored in the movie, and might not be at all in the MCU.
Harington’s involvement in Marvel Studios’ upcoming Blade reboot has been disputed.
In Marvel Comics, Dane Whitman is the third character to adopt the Black Knight moniker. He is a descendant of the original Black Knight from medieval times, and the nephew of the supervillain Black Knight, all of whom wielded the mystical Ebony Blade. The medieval roots of Dane Whitman’s family and his superhero destiny would be brilliant to explore in the MCU. However, Harington’s involvement in Marvel Studios’ upcoming Blade reboot has been disputed, so it’s unclear when Whitman’s family history could actually be seen.
7Will Dane Whitman Become The Black Knight?
Dane Whitman Was Teased To Become The Black Knight In Eternals’ Post-Credits Scene
The appearance of the Ebony Blade in Eternals’ post-credits scene all but confirmed that Dane Whitman will be becoming the medieval-themed hero in the MCU’s future. However, there has been no sign of this happening anytime soon. In Marvel Comics, the Black Knight is a prominent member of the Avengers and British superhero team Excalibur, so there are many avenues Marvel Studios could take with the character. Whitman’s future as the Black Knight is more confusing as Harington is speculated to have been removed from Blade’s story.
In live-action, Dane Whitman’s Black Knight has been included in speculation concerning the potential formation of the MCU’s Midnight Sons team. Blade is expected to build this team in the MCU’s Phase 6, featuring other supernatural heroes such as Moon Knight, Werewolf by Night, and possibly even the Scarlet Witch. The Black Knight would be a strong addition to the Midnight Sons, but since neither his next appearance nor the Midnight Sons themselves have been confirmed, Kit Harington’s future in the MCU is uncertain.
6What Does Mahershala Ali’s Eternals Cameo Really Mean?
Mahershala Ali Made His MCU Debut At The End Of Eternals
Marvel Studios confirmed that Mahershala Ali would be debuting as Eric Brooks’ Blade back in 2019, but he still hasn’t made his live-action debut in the MCU. Even though the future of his first solo movie is uncertain after a series of huge delays and lost directors, Mahershala Ali made a voice cameo in Eternals’ post-credits scene, asking Dane Whitman if he was sure he was ready to wield the Ebony Blade. This voice appearance hinted at Blade and the Black Knight’s connection, and suggested that Blade has his own history with the Ebony Blade.
Mahershala Ali previously portrayed Cornell “Cottonmouth” Stokes in Netflix’s Luke Cage series.
In recent interviews with BlackTree TV and Blavity TV, Kevin Feige provided new updates on Blade, suggesting that the movie is now heading in the right direction after major production issues. This means that it might not be too long until audiences finally get some explanation about Blade’s relationship with Dane Whitman and the Ebony Blade, clearing up any confusion about Eternals. There are doubts these connections will be explored, however, so it remains to be seen what the future holds.
For the last few years, as we’ve been trying to crack that movie, the most important thing for us is not rushing it, and making sure we are making the right Blade movie. Because there were some great Blade movies years ago. They were all rated R. So I think that’s inherent – like Deadpool – that’s inherently the character of Blade.
We are committed to the movie, and we’re so committed to it that we’re not going to make it until it’s right. [It] has been frustrating for us and for some fans that it’s taken a while, but we have a writer working on it now. I’ve read half of his new draft, and it’s feeling good so far.
5How Will Eros Help The Surviving Eternals?
Harry Styles’ Debut As Eros Is A Huge Eternals Mystery
While Eternals’ post-credits scene focused on Dane Whitman, the Ebony Blade, and Blade himself, the movie’s mid-credits scene caught up with Makkari, Thena, and Druig aboard the Domo. After realizing their friends had been taken from the Earth by Arishem, the trio of Eternals were met by none other than Harry Styles’ Eros, a.k.a. Starfox. As another Eternal, Eros suggested that he could be pivotal in helping the Eternals on the Domo save their friends, and was shown with a Celestial-communicating sphere, but nothing else was revealed about his actual plan.
Eternals’ poor performance at the global box office may have forced Marvel Studios to abandon these plans.
There has been a huge amount of speculation regarding Harry Styles’ return to the MCU, but given Feige’s recent comments, it’s unclear when this could occur. Eternals’ poor performance at the global box office may have forced Marvel Studios to abandon these plans, putting Eros, Pip the Troll, and the other Eternals’ fate in the MCU in jeopardy. Eros’ plan to save the Eternals from captivity with the Celestials isn’t the only mystery created by Harry Styles’ debut, however.
4How Exactly Are Eros & Thanos Connected?
Eros Was Introduced As The Brother Of Josh Brolin’s Thanos
Upon his introduction in Eternals’ mid-credits scene, Pip the Troll, voiced by Patton Oswalt, referred to Eros as the brother of Thanos. This caused a huge stir among the Eternals and the MCU’s audience, even though Thanos and Eros are siblings in Marvel Comics. Marvel Studios has dramatically altered the Eternals’ origin story, so they are no longer biological beings. Given the fact that Thanos is, the connection between the Mad Titan and Harry Styles’ Eternal needs to be better explained in the MCU’s future.
In the comics, Thanos and Eros grew up on Titan as Eternals, but Thanos carried the Deviant gene, giving him a grotesque appearance. The brothers were close as children, but grew apart as Thanos began to show an interest in nihilism and death. This origin story would be difficult to retain in the MCU, since Eros has been rewritten as an ageless, synthetic being. While Josh Brolin has teased Thanos’ return to the MCU, it’s unclear whether his connection to Eros and the Eternals will ever be explored in full detail.
3Is Ikaris Really Dead?
Ikaris Flew Into The Sun After The Eternals Killed Tiamut
While most of the Eternals agreed that stopping Tiamut’s emergence and saving humanity was the right course of action, Ikaris was firm in his belief that the group should have fulfilled their purpose and allowed Tiamut to be born. He vehemently stood against the other Eternals, and even engaged them in a brutal spar, but eventually relented and joined the Uni-Mind to kill Tiamut and save the Earth. In grief, Ikaris flew into the sun, mirroring his namesake from Greek mythology, whose wax wings melted after flying too high.
It seemed as though Ikaris’ story in the MCU ended in Eternals, but Richard Madden’s hero was one of the better-developed members of the team, so it would be a shame to remove him in the group’s debut project. There may still be an opportunity for Ikaris to return, however, as it’s unclear whether he would actually be destroyed by the sun’s energy and heat, or whether his Eternal physiology could withstand it. A different version of Ikaris could also appear in the MCU’s future, as the World Forge contains many copies, but there has been no word on Madden’s return.
Earth’s Eternals Aren’t The Only Eternals In The Universe
In the 16-year history of the MCU, only the Earth’s ten Eternals and Eros have been introduced to the MCU, but Eternals revealed that there were many more seed planets and hundreds more Eternals across in the cosmos. None of these other superpowered beings have yet been seen in the MCU, and it seems without a dedicated sequel to Eternals, they might not be. There are many Eternals in Marvel Comics who haven’t appeared in the MCU, such as Zuras, Valkin, and Kronos, among others.
Many unseen Eternal forms appeared during Sersi’s walkthrough of the World Forge, and Eros’ existence proves that there are other operational Eternals out there. It would be great to see more Eternals introduced, as this could solidify them as important figures in the MCU, and better expand the Celestials’ own impact on the franchise. Unfortunately, unless lone Eternals begin to appear in upcoming MCU projects, it seems unlikely that new ones will appear, particularly since it’s uncertain if Eternals’ own cast will be returning.
1What Does The Eternals & Deviants’ Origin Change Mean For The MCU’s Mutants?
The Eternals & Deviants Are Closely Connected To Mutants In Marvel Comics
Marvel Studios had a fantastic opportunity to set up the MCU’s mutants and the X-Men in Eternals, as the two races are intricately connected in Marvel Comics. When three Celestials, known as the First Host, visited Earth a million years ago, they performed genetic experiments on primitive humans. One transformed its humans into god-like beings, the Eternals, another turned the humans into grotesque creatures, the Deviants, and the third implanted dormant genes that would bud into mutations in the humans’ descendants. This origin story was completely changed for the MCU.
In Eternals, Arishem revealed that the Deviants were created to eliminate predators on Celestial seed planets, and the Eternals were created to eliminate the Deviants when they evolved out of control. This completely severed the Eternals and Deviants’ connection to mutants, and will have seriously altered mutants’ origins in the MCU. It remains to be seen how Marvel Studios will explain mutation now. Even though the MCU’s X-Men reboot could provide an explanation, it would have been great to see Eternals begin to sew these seeds.
