Marvel's Eternals: Angelina Jolie & Richard Madden's Superhero Relationship Teased In New Merch

By Richard Nebens Posted:
Angelina Jolie, Eternals, Richard Madden

Marvel Studios is blowing the roof of the comic book movie fandom with news from every corner of the MCU. This includes but isn't limited to the debut trailer for Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Russell Crowe revealing his role in Thor: Love and Thunder, and Alfred Molina confirming a de-aged Doc Ock in Spider-Man: No Way Home.

Almost lost in this mix of movies may be one of Marvel's most ambitious projects in Eternals, which is preparing for its theatrical debut in November 2021. Bringing one of the most star-studded casts of any MCU outing this year, these immortal beings will finally be featured in their first live-action story in Phase 4's third movie.

While not much is known about the actual plot of the film, the most recent social media blast surrounding the outing revealed some interesting information regarding relationships with the team...

BONDS BETWEEN THE MCU'S ETERNALS

The Superhero Stuff merchandise outlet, via ETERNALSnews on Twitter, listed a new promotional item for Marvel Studios' Eternals on its website with silhouette images of the film's ten main characters.

Eternals t-shirt
Superhero Stuff

In clockwise order around the circle, the heroes start with Richard Madden's Ikaris at the top, followed by Thena, Druig, Ajak, Kingo, Sersi, Sprite, Phastos, Makkari, and Gilgamesh. Notably, there are four groupings of these characters connecting to the Eternals symbol in the middle.

Eternals t-shirt design
Superhero Stuff

One of the interesting groupings is that of of Kingo, Sersi, and Sprite at the bottom of the promotional art. This trio connects back to set photos of the three of them in a scene filmed in January 2020, as seen below:

Additionally, Thena and Ikaris appear next to each other in another grouping with Gilgamesh, teasing a likely non-romantic relationship between Richard Madden and Angelina Jolie's characters in at least one part of the film. This ties back to a leak showing both heroes next to Gilgamesh in a report from late December 2020.

Other character pairings teased through this merchandise include Druid next to Ajak as well as Phastos and Makkari

Eternals character art
Eternals

 

INTRIGUING TEAM-UPS BETWEEN THE IMMORTALS

This merchandise certainly teases some exciting dynamics between the ten main characters set to lead the way in Eternals, especially with the images connecting back to previously released plot teases and set photos.

Thena and Ikaris seem to make a lot of sense to join together during the plot, being two of the most powerful characters in the film, along with the fact that they're played by arguably the cast's two biggest stars: Angelina Jolie and Richard Madden. Both actors should be set to take on major responsibilities in being at the forefront of the team both on and off-screen.

Druid and Ajak should also be ones to watch out for, especially with Salma Hayek's Ajak classically being regarded as the leader of the Eternals from the comics. Barry Keoghan's Druid is rumored as one of the film's villains, which likely indicates some kind of eventual confrontation between himself and Ajak.

Regardless of how these relationships turn out, these images tease a massive movie coming with new characters in the MCU. The Eternals have seen plenty of hype already through the movie's all-star cast and director Chloé Zhao, and the film has cemented its place among the year's biggest releases.

Eternals will release in theaters on November 5, 2021.

- About The Author: Richard Nebens
Richard Nebens joined The Direct in March 2020, now serving as the site's Senior Writer and also working as an assistant editor and content creator. He started his journalism career as a hobby in 2019 and is passionate about sharing news and stories from the entertainment industry, especially comic book movies, comedy, and sci-fi. Richard looks to expand his knowledge about movies and TV every day, and he is eager to stay locked into the latest releases and breaking news at every opportunity.