ETERNALS Star Gemma Chan Finally Explains What Led To Her MCU Return After CAPTAIN MARVEL

Gemma Chan will play Sersi in Eternals, but previously took on the role of Minn-Erva in Captain Marvel. So, what led to her returning to the Marvel Cinematic Universe? The actress finally explains all...

By JoshWilding - Dec 16, 2020 04:12 AM EST

Filed Under: Eternals

Gemma Chan had a small role in 2019's Captain Marvel as Minn-Erva, and while it was a waste of the talented actress, fans were still surprised to learn that she had been cast as Sersi in Eternals. While Chan was nearly unrecognisable as the blue-skinned Kree, the fact that she'd be getting to play another MCU character so soon was definitely noteworthy .

During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Chan finally shed some light on what led to her joining the cast of Eternals, and it probably won't shock you to learn it was Kevin Feige's doing.

"I encountered Kevin Feige during the awards circuit for Crazy Rich Asians and out of the blue, he just came up and said, 'We'd love to have you back.; I'm going to paraphrase really badly, but I guess he'd seen the film and said, 'We'd love to make better use of you. We'd just love for you to come back. We want you to do something else so let's find that project.'"

"I had no idea that it would be so soon. So, yeah, it was just really nice of him to say that."

Chan explained that she still needed to do a screen test despite having already starred in a Marvel Cinematic Universe project, and while the actress couldn't reveal much about Eternals, it sounds like it might be something special.

"It felt very different. It's a really epic story. Very ambitious. There are lots of new characters. I feel like it's going to be a superhero movie that is not like a superhero movie."

"That sounds like a very obvious thing to say, but they're trying to do something different with this film. So we're all crossing our fingers that it works and that people respond to it. We shot a lot on location, using a lot of natural light. We did some stuff in studio, but a lot of stuff on location. There wasn't that much blue screen stuff, which I did quite a lot of on Captain Marvel."

Eternals is now set to be released in theaters next November, meaning we'll see it a whole year after originally planned. It sounds like it will be worth the wait, though, even if it's just to see Chan get the role she deserves in a big budget blockbuster like this one.

Click on the "Next" button below for the biggest
reveals from the Eternals set photos!

At Least Some Of Eternals Will Take Place In The Present Day

Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige has been quoted as saying that Eternals will take us through thousands of years in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but early set photos confirmed that at least some of this movie will also take place in the present day (likely after Avengers: Endgame).

Gemma Chan's Sersi has been spotted in London with a cell phone, so these heroes are clearly living among us and hiding in plain sight. These images have also confirmed that Sersi will fall for Kit Harington's Dane Whitman in the present, and not in Medieval times as some early rumours about the Marvel Studios movie suggested (though it is possible she crossed paths with his ancestor).

Somebody Is Going To Die

Angelina Jolie's Thena was spotted from afar relatively early on in the proceedings, and these photos remain among the most intriguing. In what looked an awful lot like an Medieval setting, we saw what looked like a funeral pyre burning before the Eternal made her way to a nearby lake and scattered some ashes in it.

The question is, who do those ashes belong to?

There are quite a few cast members who have yet to be spotted in the present day scenes that have been filmed, so it's entirely possible Eternals will kill off one of the heroes in the past...

The Eternals Use Their Powers In Public

Various images from the set of the movie have shown characters like Ikaris and Sersi using their powers in the present day in very public areas (clearly, they're done hiding at this point).

Interestingly, it seems as if the Eternals will share the same powers as their comic book counterparts, as they've been shown flying, and using what are more than likely energy powers.

During these sequences, the heroes have been shown in their street clothes, so who knows if they'll actually suit up in the present or whether we'll only see those costumes in the past.

The Costumes Look Awesome

In the most action-packed set photos from the movie, Thena, Phastos, and Sersi have been spotted suited up and battling an unknown threat (likely one of the Celestials). The concept art shown at Comic-Con wasn't the best we've seen from Marvel Studios, but the costumes look much better in real-life and pay homage to the source material in some exciting ways.

We've yet to receive a detailed look at the heroes, but from what little we could see in these images, fans definitely won't be disappointed when this group of heroes arrives in the MCU.

Two Iconic Comic Book Locations Have Been Confirmed

Among the coolest set photos we've seen since Eternals started shooting are those that confirm that we'll spend time both in Babylon and the Tomb of the Gods.

In the comic books, Gilgamesh once fought off an attempted invasion of Earth by the Kronans there, while Thena met and grew close with the Deviant known as Kro there. As for the Tomb of the Gods, that was located in the City of the Space Gods and built to herald the arrival of the Celestials.

In this movie, it seems the two locations have been combined, and there's a strong chance we'll see both the arrival of the Celestials, and a confrontation between the Eternals and Deviants here if Jack Kirby's comic book tales are any indication.

Dane Whitman And Sersi's Modern Day Romance

As we've mentioned, Sersi and Dane Whitman will become romantically involved, and they've been shown in various locations across London growing close. This shouldn't come as a huge surprise, especially as the two heroes also grew close when they were members of The Avengers.

This romance appears to be a huge part of Eternals, and Sersi's love of the human race could be what leads to the team finally stepping out of the shadows to protect Earth's inhabitants.

In the comics, it's been revealed that The Celestials come to Earth every 1000 years, and with no more Avengers, perhaps they're the only ones powerful enough to overcome their creators? The Deviants are also bound to factor into this, but there's another possible explanation...

Is Dane Whitman An Archaeologist?

Archaeological digs have also been spotted in set photos, a sign perhaps that the existence of the Eternals, Deviants, and Celestials will be revealed by an unsuspecting human.

This would actually follow the comic books (albeit with some noteworthy changes) as it was Daniel Damian who first discovered their existence and unwittingly found himself being spied on by Ikaris, who was posing as a fellow scientist. If, in this version, Dane is the archaeologist and Sersi is keeping an eye on him, perhaps her falling for him is what leads to the return of the Celestials?

It's hard to say for sure, but we'll clearly be delving into the team's past both when it happened and from a present day perspective.

Eternals Vs. Deviants

In one batch of set photos, Sersi, Kingo, and Sprite were shown saying what appeared to be an emotional goodbye to each other in the present day, and while it's hard to place what sequence this happens in, other images have features Sersi, Ikaris, and Sprite protecting Dane from unseen creatures.

Chances are that those are the Deviants, but why is it so important to protect Dane?

Yes, they're superheroes, but there could be more to him than meets the eye, and it's hard to imagine his transformation into Black Knight not being touched on in some way in this movie.

Do these new details about Eternals have you excited for the Marvel Studios movie? Have you spotted any details we've missed? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section!

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33 Comments

Se4M4NSt4ine - 12/16/2020, 4:41 AM

“ETERNALS Star Gemma Chan Finally Explains What Led To Her MCU Return After CAPTAIN MARVEL”

marvel72 - 12/16/2020, 6:24 PM

@Se4M4NSt4ine - Exactly, it was nothing else.

GhostDog - 12/16/2020, 4:46 AM

As he should have

bkmeijer2 - 12/16/2020, 4:58 AM

Weird to think Eternals we still have to wait almost another year for this. Hope she doesn't get too overshadowed by Jolie or Harrington

aurorsand146 - 12/16/2020, 6:35 AM

@bkmeijer - Angelina Jolie maybe but for Kit Harrington, I think it might be the other way around.

bkmeijer2 - 12/16/2020, 6:53 AM

@aurorsand146 - I guess its more for me that I think Harrington will overshadow others, because he'll probably keep my attention because I cant stop but seeing him as Jon Snow

aurorsand146 - 12/16/2020, 7:57 AM

@bkmeijer - OHhhhhhhh. Okay, I get what you mean. That happens to me whenever I see RDJ in other films. I just see Iron Man lol.

bkmeijer2 - 12/16/2020, 8:22 AM

@aurorsand146 - same. Goes for a lot of actors and actresses for me

PantherKing - 12/16/2020, 5:03 AM

My most anticipated phase 4 movie. In retrospect this movie should have been here by now and we should have already seen it but oh well.

WeaponXCII - 12/16/2020, 5:36 AM

Why not just make good use of her the first time around?

Maybe Marvel isn’t as much of a well-oiled machine as we thought.

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ETERNALS Star Gemma Chan Finally Explains What Led To Her MCU Return After CAPTAIN MARVEL

Gemma Chan will play Sersi in Eternals, but previously took on the role of Minn-Erva in Captain Marvel. So, what led to her returning to the Marvel Cinematic Universe? The actress finally explains all...

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