Everything We Know About Eternals 2

Warning: SPOILERS for Eternals ahead.

Marvel's Eternals is big and ambitious and whether it will get a sequel remains to be seen; here's everything we know about a potential Eternals 2. Academy Award winner Chloé Zhao's film is both a vast historical epic and sweeping love story across the millennia, bringing something wholly new to the superhero genre. Eternals is arguably the MCU's riskiest venture yet, but also a long-overdue step toward true inclusion and representation in the MCU in a number of ways. If Eternals 2 does happen, it will be interesting to see if it can push the boundaries of the Marvel formula again.

Eternals tells the story of the Eternals, an ancient race of aliens who were sent to Earth thousands of years ago by the Celestial, Arishem. Their mission is to protect and watch over humanity, guarding against the threat of the Deviants, the Eternals' mortal enemies. For thousands of years, they have lived in the shadows, going their separate ways 500 years ago. But when the Deviants begin to reemerge, the Eternals must reunite in order to save the planet they love.

So far, it's unclear how Marvel's upcoming venture will fare at the box office. Eternals has the lowest Rotten Tomatoes critics score of any Marvel movie, yet Eternals also has some of the best ticket presales numbers of 2021. It leads one to wonder whether or not an Eternals 2 will be greenlit or if Marvel is content to allow Eternals to set up a number of stories and characters but otherwise be a one-off movie. In regard to that sequel, here's everything that's known about a potential Eternals 2.

Will Marvel Make Eternals 2?

At the moment, the answer to the question of whether or not Marvel will make Eternals 2 is a big question mark. So far, aside from The Incredible Hulk, which was retroactively canonized in the MCU, every Marvel movie about an individual superhero or a team has gotten sequels. Even Black Widow hasn't had a potential sequel ruled out. But Eternals may be the one MCU movie that is set up so well that it's meant to be a foundation for the greater MCU rather than a launchpad for an individual franchise. Longtime Marvel producer Nate Moore even said in a recent interview when asked about an Eternals sequel, "It’s not something that is a must-have. Obviously, we have ideas of where we could go, but there isn’t a hard and fast rule where we have to have three of these things and this is the first." Marvel has always been a bit cagey with their responses to questions about the future, but it's clear that they're not in any rush to greenlight Eternals 2–not yet, at least.

Which Eternals Cast & Characters Can Return In Eternals 2

Assuming Eternals 2 is set wholly in the present day, then all the cast members whose characters survived to the end of the first movie could return, including Gemma Chan (Sersi), Kingo (Kumail Nanjiani), Makkari (Lauren Ridloff), Druig (Barry Keoghan), and Thena (Angelina Jolie), as well as Phastos (Brian Tyree Henry) and Sprite (Lia McHugh), and Kit Harington as Dane Whitman. Seeing as how they were killed in Eternals, it's highly unlikely Salma Hayek's Ajak or Don Lee's Gilgamesh would return, save for in flashbacks. The big question mark is Richard Madden's Eternals leader Ikaris. The last he was seen in Eternals, he was flying into the sun in an attempt to burn up and kill himself, but it's unclear if that's even possible for an Eternal or if Arishem may resurrect him in some way.

Eternals 2's Story: How It Sets Up A Sequel

Despite Moore's comments that a sequel isn't necessary, Eternals certainly leaves quite a few story doors open should Eternals 2 be greenlit. For starters, there's the question of how Sersi was able to turn a Deviant into a tree. The movie makes it clear that it's something she wasn't able to do before so it would appear Sersi's powers suddenly increased dramatically. That's a thread that a sequel can explore, particularly if it's not just Sersi who has experienced an increase in her powers, but all the Eternals.

There's also the space adventure story set up by the very end of the movie and the mid-credits scene. The Eternals Thena, Makkari, and Druig have taken their spaceship, the Domo, and left Earth to search for other planets with Eternals across the galaxy–but they all seem to be missing. It could be a matter of them having also figured out their real mission and resisting Arishem, prompting him to capture them the way he did Sersi, or it could be something even greater unfolding. In any case, Harry Styles' Starfox certainly seems to know where the missing Eternals are and how to get them back.

There are also the earthbound, human stories of Phastos and Sprite. Phastos' marriage and fatherhood are bound to change now that his son knows he's an alien superhero. As for Sprite, Sersi granted her wish to become human at the end of the movie, but it's unclear what exactly that entails. Even if Sprite is able to keep her powers, the transition to being not just a human, but one with a mind thousands and thousands of years old in a child's body will present its own significant challenges.

Lastly, Dane Whitman is set up to become the MCU's Black Knight in Eternals' end-credits scene. He's a character with the potential to make a big impact on the MCU Phase 4, including going up against Kang the Conquerer or leading the next Avengers lineup. He may get his own spinoff movie, but considering his relationship with Sersi, it would be odd if he weren't at least to make an appearance in Eternals 2.

Eternals 2 Release Date Prediction: MCU Phase 5?

All of the Eternals walk through the desert

Marvel doesn't appear to be in any rush to pull the trigger on Eternals 2. They took their time developing the first Eternals movie, and even before the Covid-19 pandemic pushed their entire MCU Phase 4 slate back, the studio has been more content to slow down on sequels in the wake of the Infinity Saga being wrapped up. Even if Chloé Zhao had the script for Eternals 2 ready to go, Marvel already has movies planned through at least the summer of 2023. After that, there are two untitled Marvel films with release dates of November 13, 2023, and February 16, 2024. And there are undated movies already in development that will likely take priority over an Eternals 2, including Blade, Fantastic Four, Captain America 4, Deadpool 3, and reportedly Thunderbolts and Nova. Considering how long it takes to make a Marvel movie and get it through post-production and everything else they already have in development, Eternals 2 likely wouldn't see theaters until 2025.