What Happens To Ikaris At The End Of Eternals?

Warning! SPOILERS for Eternals

Marvel's Eternals ended with the death of Ikaris, albeit in a tremendously appropriate way. Based on the characters created by the legendary Jack Kirby, in the MCU the Eternals are a group of ancient aliens created by the Celestials to protect inhabited worlds from the marauding threat of the Deviants. For most of human history, the Eternals have been viewed as objects of reverence and worship, and for millennia they have been responsible for countless key developments in human civilization and technology.

However, the Eternals movie saw these ancient heroes learn their true purpose. The Celestials were not disinterested beings who blessed the cosmos and encouraged the development of life. Rather, they are the universe's ultimate alpha predator, with nascent Celestials planted within inhabited worlds that feed off the life energy and destroy the entire planet upon the moment they "hatch." This revelation divided the Eternals, many of whom had grown to love humanity, and who committed themselves to defending the people of Earth, leading them to stop the Emergence of the Celestial named Tiamut. Ikaris, the Eternals' most fearsome warrior, chose differently: he believed in the Celestial mission, and he swore to stop his fellow Eternals. Fortunately for the people of Earth, he was ultimately unsuccessful.

Ikaris chose to remain true to the principles that had guided him across the millennia, even at the cost of his relationship with Sersi. He truly loved Sersi, but he knew there could be no reconciliation with her now, no restoration of the relationship he had enjoyed for 5,000 years. Unable to live an eternity without her, and deprived now of her purpose as a servant of the Celestials, he chose to commit suicide by flying into the sun. It was an appropriate death for Ikaris, the man who inspired the Greek legend of Icarus - the mythical boy who flew too close to the sun, whose wings melted and who died as a result. That myth was apparently a witty tale told by Sprite, and it became Ikaris' fate.

Is Ikaris Dead At The End Of Eternals?

Eternals are powerful and remarkably durable, but there seems no doubt Ikaris is truly dead at the end of Eternals, for there is no way he can survive plunging into the sun. Although Eternals elevates Ikaris to the MCU's Superman on several occasions - he's essentially the "Dark Superman" trope - Ikaris' abilities are very different to DC's Man of Steel's on the most basic level. Superman derives his powers from the sun, absorbing solar energy, and so he has survived being in the heart of the star in the comics. In contrast, Ikaris' abilities derive from cosmic energy, meaning his body cannot process the sheer power of the sun that has otherwise been bombarding his body. The story of Ikaris has truly come to an end by the end of Eternals, with Sprite's tale transformed into a prophecy. There is a tragic irony to this, given Sprite had secretly loved Ikaris for millennia, and she probably originally told the story of Icarus as a loving joke.

The interesting question, though, is whether or not Ikaris will stay dead. In the comics, the Eternals cheat death by being resurrected by the Great Machine. One shot in Eternals saw the Celestial Arishem reveal the Eternals were created in a realm called the World Forge, which looked reminiscent of the Great Machine, meaning it could potentially create a new Ikaris. Should it do so, however, the new Ikaris would not have the memories of the old one, making him a very different character to the one who died in Eternals.

More: Eternals' Cliffhanger Ending Explained