Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings hit theaters recently, and it has proven to be another successful outing for Marvel Studios. Everyone seems to love it, and its box office numbers did wonders for the industry at large.
In fact, thanks to the film's performance, Marvel's next film, Eternals, is set to keep its theatrical release instead of going hybrid like Black Widow. After all, Disney and Marvel probably want to avoid a hybrid release if they can especially after all of that Scarlett Johansson drama.
Eternals is set to introduce a brand-new group to the world in the form of near god-like beings who have been on Earth for 7,000 years. The group is led by Richard Madden's Ikaris with other members such as Angelina Jolie's Thena and Gemma Chan's Sersi.
But what will the group's future in the MCU look like past their debut film? Angelina Jolie sat down to talk with Total Film about just that.
The Eternals' Marvel Future
In a conversation with Total Film, via Twitter user CreamOrScream, Thena actress Angelina Jolie talked about her time with Marvel in the upcoming film Eternals.
Before diving into the atmosphere on set and the impact of the film's casting, Jolie was asked if the door was left open for Thena to return after Eternals. The inquiry gave Jolie a good laugh, saying that "[she doesn't] think [she] can say that:"
"I don't think I can say that. Good try though! [laughs]"
Jolie then mentioned that director Chloé Zhao encouraged the actors to bring themselves to their characters, saying "it was much more emotional and personal than... anticipated coming in:"
"She developed them [that way] - or we'd been cast with that in mind, and then it developed further. And we felt very much who we were playing. It was much more emotional and personal than I certainly had anticipated coming in."
Lastly, Jolie praised the film, saying that all the casting "[is] not diversity for the sake of diversity:"
"I think a good thing about this film is, it's not diversity for the sake of diversity. Part of the original idea is, if you're going to have Eternals and they're going to blend into the Earth across the globe, they have to be on the globe. And still, we have places we need to go that are unexplored. But it certainly just felt right."
Angelina Jolie Cryptic on MCU Future
It's no surprise Angelina Jolie couldn't comment on her future in the MCU—this is Marvel after all, and the studio loves its secrets. It's arguably a safe bet that not all the Eternals will make it out of their debut film, so here's to hoping Jolie's Thena isn't one of those.
Kit Harington was asked a similar question recently, and his response was in the same vein. He did, however, mention that he hopes Eternals is only the tip of the iceberg for his character, Dane Whitman. While Angelina Jolie's future is questionable, it's probably pretty safe to assume Harington has a long MCU future ahead of him.
Fans will have to wait until November 5, 2021 when Eternals hits theaters worldwide. After a year of delays, it's going to feel good to finally be sitting in that theater experiencing the epic that Marvel Studios has been sitting on for quite some time now.
