Once the world reaches a point that the next phase of the MCU can get rolling, Marvel Studios has some big plans, to say the least. It all kicks off with a long-overdue Black Widow solo film, and will eventually give fans another Taika Waititi-helmed Thor movie. But one of the biggest swings the MCU has ever taken is also on the way in the form of a movie based on the Eternals.

Developed by the legendary Jack Kirby in the 1970s, the Eternals were an evolutionary offshoot of humans created by the Celestials. Their intention was that these beings would be the defenders of Earth, frequently facing their enemies, the Deviants. In Neil Gaiman's attempt to retcon them, it was revealed that one of the Eternals caused them all to forget who they were. Eventually, their memories returned, and they rejoined the Marvel Universe.

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The Eternals

More recent comic runs have not been as kind to the group. When the Avengers reunited to fight the Horde, the involvement of the Celestials led them to ask the Eternals for help. When Earth's Mightiest Heroes arrived at their allies' home, they found all of the Eternals except Ikaris dead. They had all committed suicide when they discovered the Celestials did not create them to help humanity so much as help harvest the necessary antibodies from them to fight the Horde.

It's highly unlikely that the upcoming movie will include the Eternals killing themselves en masse, but the loss of memory angle could easily play a huge role in the story. Being that the Eternals are an ancient race of superheroes that predate most other powered beings in the MCU by dozens of millennia, it would be interesting to play the angle that they all forgot who they were. That event would explain why they did not get involved in the Infinity Saga storyline in any capacity.

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Additionally, the final battle with Thanos and resurrecting half the life in the universe could also prove to be the catalyst that brings them back to the world. Some have theorized that Iron Man's snap will play into the events that bring the X-Men into MCU continuity, so the same could be said for the characters in Marvel's next attempt at a major franchise. Regardless of that, though, The Eternals could have even more far-reaching consequences for the MCU narrative as a whole.

Beyond the occasional flashback, the furthest back the MCU has gone into its own history in any substantial fashion was Captain America: The First Avenger. The Eternals presents an opportunity to delve even deeper into that history, providing opportunities to foreshadow upcoming events and character introductions. If everything goes as planned, The Eternals could be the movie that sets the table for everything to come for the next decade.

Directed by Chloé Zhao with a screenplay by Matthew and Ryan Firpo, The Eternals stars Richard Madden as Ikaris, Kumail Nanjiani as Kingo, Lauren Ridloff as Makkari, Brian Tyree Henry as Phastos, Salma Hayek as Ajak, Lia McHugh as Sprite, Don Lee as Gilgamesh, Angelina Jolie as Thena, Barry Keoghan as Druig, Gemma Chan as Sersi and Kit Harington as Dane Whitman, aka the Black Knight. The film will premiere in theaters on February 12, 2021.

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