Eternals helmer Chloé Zhao thinks Frances McDormand, who starred in the director's Oscar-winning film Nomadland, is ready to join the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Thanks to the COVID-19 production shutdown for Eternals, Zhao was able to finish editing Nomadland and get it out in time to win Best Picture and Best Director at the Oscars this year. It also nabbed a third Oscar, for McDormand, the film's lead. Now, Zhao says the acclaimed performer is ready to join the MCU.
"I think she wants to. I think she's open to it. Yeah, I think she's open to it," Zhao said about the possibility when asked by Yahoo!'s Kevin Polowy. "I think she wants to do something really fun. I think she would want to do something unexpected because that's Fran. She's always challenging herself."
McDormand, who has also won Oscars for her roles in Fargo and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, is not actually a stranger to big-budget affairs. She voiced a character in Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted in 2012 and appeared in Transformers: Dark of the Moon the prior year. But she's yet to appear in a superhero film, and Zhao could serve as her bridge.
While McDormand would likely have her pick of projects, it's possible the actor could choose to join the sequel to Eternals. The film will introduce a whole new set of heroes into the MCU along with a new cosmic mythos, meaning a franchise is sure to follow. Of course, any sequel is contingent on the performance of the first film, and Eternals won't arrive in theaters for another two weeks.
So far, the reviews for Eternals have been strong but not overly positive. Many have praised its scope and beauty but noted that it fails to pull off everything it attempts. In CBR's own review of the movie, Brandon Zachary said much of the same.
"What keeps Eternals from elevating to the top tier of the franchise is that its massive scope can sometimes play against the story," Zachary wrote. "While the Eternals are all well-defined and constructed, the near-constant perspective hopping can blunt the story's forward momentum... It's a story that relies on convenience and coincidence during heightened moments, leading the film, at times, to feel rushed."
Eternals hits theaters Nov. 5.
Source: Twitter via The Direct