As we enter a new phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the cosmic corners of this franchise will be expanding significantly. Our next deep dive in that realm will be through The Eternals, and we’ve already known for a while that the movie will be set across thousands of years. It’s now been confirmed that the ‘present day’ aspect of The Eternals will explore these protagonists' status in a post-Avengers: Endgame MCU. Check out the new synopsis that Disney released for the second Phase 4 movie:
Marvel Studios' The Eternals features an exciting new team of Super Heroes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, ancient aliens who have been living on Earth in secret for thousands of years. Following the events of Avengers: Endgame, an unexpected tragedy forces them out of the shadows to reunite against mankind's most ancient enemy, The Deviants.
This synopsis was unveiled as part of a preview of Walt Disney Studios’ movies coming out in 2020. So while the first Phase 4 movie, Black Widow, will be set between Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War, The Eternals will bring us back to the present day MCU and show how the eponymous characters’ lived have changed following the events of Avengers: Endgame.
Spider-Man: Far From Home was our first look at the aftermath of Avengers: Endgame’s five-year time jump and the dusted being snapped back to life, but let’s not forget that it wasn’t just Earth that was affected by Thanos’ actions. The Eternals provides an opportunity to explore how other areas of the cosmos are doing after these explosive events, though it remains to be seen if these characters have any direct ties to the late Mad Titan (in the comics, Thanos is an Eternal-Deviant hybrid).
More importantly, this synopsis provides a reason for why The Eternals didn’t join Avengers: Endgame’s final battle: they were in hiding. Since it sounds like the MCU’s Eternals are just as powerful as their comic book counterparts, if not more so, they definitely would have been most helpful repelling Thanos’ army, but something required them to keep a low profile. Whatever the specific reasoning was for this, they’ll be forced to come into the light to clash with The Deviants, their sworn nemeses.
Because The Eternals stretches across so many millennia, it remains to be seen exactly how much of it will take place post-Avengers: Endgame, but judging by that synopsis, it won’t be an insignificant amount of time. Perhaps the main crux of the story will be set in the ‘present day,’ and as those events unfold, we’ll flash back to see what these characters were up to hundreds and thousands of years earlier.
With just 10 months to go until The Eternals’ release, we have a slightly clearer picture of what to expect, and it shouldn’t be too long until the first official pictures and trailer drop. Directed by Chloe Zhao and written by Matthew and Ryan Firpo, the cast includes Angelina Jolie, Richard Madden, Kumail Nanjiani, Brian Tyree Henry, Salma Hayek, Lauren Ridloff, Lia McHugh, Don Lee, Barry Keoghan, Gemma Chan and Kit Harington.
The Eternals opens in theaters on November 6, so keep checking back with CinemaBlend for more coverage. You can also learn what else is being released in Phase 4 and beyond with our Marvel movies guide.
