There were a lot of big casting announcements made this past weekend at D23 Expo 2019, but few were as major as the news about Kit Harington joining Chloe Zhao's The Eternals. The Game of Thrones star will not only be getting the chance to reunite with his former co-star/on-screen brother Richard Madden, but will be the first actor to bring to life the fan-favorite comic book hero Dane Whitman a.k.a. Black Knight.
It's a tremendously exciting development for Marvel Cinematic Universe fans, but now we have a nice cherry on top, as Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige has noted that seeing the character in movies beyond his debut is very much on the table.
The executive/producer sat down with Good Morning America backstage at D23 Expo, and when asked about Kit Harington's newest role he mentioned that there is definitely a lot of potential for the character's presence in the franchise to expand. Said Feige,
He’s a really amazing actor, and this part came up in The Eternals film that we’re doing. We were so happy when he agreed to join, and it is a part that could perhaps grow into something else in the future.
Introduced in 1967, and created by Roy Thomas and John Buscema, Dane Whitman in the comics winds up becoming Black Knight because it is a family legacy, with his ancestor, Sir Percy of Scandia, being the first man to take the title during the rule of King Arthur. Dane took on the mantle himself after the death of his uncle, Nathan Garrett, who operated as a supervillain under the mask, and in becoming a hero Dane also hopes to redeem the name.
The idea of the character "perhaps [growing] into something else in the future" is certainly an intriguing notion given his history in the pages of Marvel publications. In addition to having an association with the Eternals, most notably because of his romantic relationship with Sersei (played by Gemma Chan in the movie), he has also spent time as a straight-up Avenger, having first joined Earth's Mightiest Heroes in Avengers #71.
Of course, this is all looking into the future, and the truth is that right now we know next to nothing about where the character is actually going to be starting in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. We know that he will be played by Kit Harington in The Eternals, but no other information has been provided about the part.
That being said, once we start getting that information, fans will surely go wild with speculation about how Black Knight will fit as a puzzle piece into the future of the franchise.
The Eternals, which also stars Angelina Jolie, Kumail Nanjiani, Brian Tyree Henry, Salma Hayek, Lauren Ridloff, Lia McHugh, Don Lee, and Barry Keoghan in addition to the aforementioned Kit Harington, Richard Madden, and Gemma Chan, will be going into production this fall, and will be heading to theaters on November 6, 2020.
