Kevin Feige back in April:

‘Eternals’ is one of many many many things that we are actively beginning to have creative discussions about to see if we believe in them enough to put them on a slate.

And now Deadline today: “The Rider Director Chloe Zhao Lands Marvel’s The Eternals.”

With this news, Zhao becomes the first women of color to direct a film in the MCU. The screenplay for the film, per Deadline, was written by Matthew and Ryan Firpo. The Eternals, created by Jack Kirby during one of his final stints at Marvel in the 1970s, are a race of nearly immortal beings created by the mega-powerful aliens the Celestials. (The Celestials have already appeared in a few MCU movies, including Guardians of the Galaxy.) The Eternals live secretly on Earth locked in a war with another group called the Deviants.

This all sounds ... absolutely nothing like Chloe Zhao’s last movie, The Rider, a sparse character study about a rodeo rider who’s suffered a horrible brain injury that could end his career forever. There are no aliens or special effects in The Rider, but it is an incredible film, with beautiful performances and a deeply moving story. If Zhao can bring a fraction of the feeling in The Rider to her Marvel work, The Eternals could be a very interesting film.

Despite Feige’s earlier comments, The Eternals is not yet officially announced for Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In fact, the only two confirmed films for Phase 4 are Spider-Man: Far From Home and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, whose fate was thrown into doubt when Disney fired James Gunn. So The Eternals could be one of the next MCU movies we see following Avengers 4 and Spidey 2. And it has a very interesting director.

Gallery - Marvel Movie Plot Holes That Make No Sense:

 

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