The upcoming Eternals will premiere in November, and fans still don't know what the movie's plot is. Marvel has given vague clues, hinting that the Deviants will be the main antagonists. Additionally, the teaser trailer revealed that the Eternals have been on Earth for centuries, seemingly helping humanity along the way.
As with every other MCU project, fans on Reddit already came with numerous theories about the movie. Some of them are definitely reaching, but others have potential and could very well turn out to be true. Passionate fans love theorizing about their favorite MCU properties, and Eternals is the perfect project to let their imaginations fly.
The Movie Will Show How Knowhere's Celestial Lost Its Head
Most MCU fans wouldn't like to visit Knowhere. It's a lawless place where the worst people in the galaxy gather, a haven for outlaws located inside the severed head of a Celestial. Peter Quill even says it "sucks," and most audiences would agree.
However, fans still want to know how that particular Celestial died. Reddit user CorvusGuevara proposes that Eternals will show the Celestial's death, and based on the enthusiastic response he received in the comments, that's something fans really want to see.
Sersi And Dane's Child Will Be The MCU's First Mutant
The X-Men's arrival to the MCU is still pending, and fans keep coming up with ideas about how it will happen. Many thought Wanda would create them along with the hex, but that turned out to be incorrect.
Redditor Realistic_Analyst_26 came up with a theory tying the Eternals with the mutants. The Redditor proposes that Sersi and Dane Whitman's child will be the first host of the X-gene, inspired by a YouTube video from New Rockstars. It's an ambitious theory, and while it may sound a tad farfetched, there's no doubt that Sersi and Dane's relationship will be crucial in the movie.
Gilgamesh Is The Antagonist
Don Lee will portray Gilgamesh, the strongest Eternal who develops a close relationship with Angelina Jolie's Thena. Redditor NightHunter909 doesn't believe the Deviants will be the movie's main villains because of their absence from the promotional campaign. Instead, the Redditor believes that Gilgamesh will be Eternals villain.
In the comics, Thena has an affair with the Deviant warlord Kro. This Redditor believes Kro will either be another identity of Gilgamesh or that Gilgamesh will play Kro's role in the movie. Furthermore, they also propose Thena will play an antagonistic - albeit not entirely villainous - part in the film.
Ikaris Is The Antagonist
Redditor mildoptimism believes that Ikaris, not Gilgamesh, is the movie's true villain. Circa 2019, Eternals was said to follow Sersi and Kit Harington's Dane Whitman's love story. However, the teaser trailer instead teased a Sersi and Ikaris romance.
The Redditor proposes that Sersi will break up with Ikaris over a disagreement about how to treat humans. She will then begin a romantic relationship with Dane, making Ikaris jealous and turning him into the movie's antagonist. Ikaris is the Prime Eternal in the comics, so turning him into the antagonist would be a bold move. However, Marvel has experimented with their characters before, so it's not unprecedented.
Black Knight Is The Villain
Redditor ComicsEmpire thinks Black Knight will be the movie's villain. The user postulates that the Eternals will separate Sersi and Dane due to his human nature, making him resentful.
Unlike the Ikaris or Gilgamesh theories, there's actually a precedent for an evil Dane Whitman. In the comics, Whitman's uncle was a villainous Black Knight. Furthermore, Whitman also has a corrupted alternate version, Proctor, who travels across the multiverse, killing every version of Sersi that exists.
The Eternals Already Fought (And Lost) Against Thanos
One of the main questions about the Eternals is why they didn't fight alongside the Avengers during the final stand against Thanos. Redditor Thanosisfather has the perfect answer: they already fought against the Mad Titan and lost.
In the comics, Thanos has Deviant genes, and the user believes this will translate to the MCU. Thanos' despotic actions around the universe put him on the Eternals' radar, and they engage him in battle. However, they lose and flee back to Earth, where they insert themselves among the humans, influencing the ultimate creation of the Avengers and preparing them for Thanos' eventual arrival. It's a very intricate theory that severely nerfs the Eternals' power while also making them directly responsible for the entire MCU. Fans may not love this one.
The Eternals Look Up To The Avengers
Redditor swallowyourmind believes that the Avengers are the MCU's central source of good, and every character knows it. In his response to another thread, he proposes that Thanos dusted half of the Eternals with the Snap, leaving them confused and scared.
Once the Avengers bring everyone back, the Eternals acquire newfound respect for humanity and decide it's time to reveal themselves. Once the Deviant threat arises, they jump to the opportunity of cleaning their mess, inspired by the Avengers' courage.
Thanos Dusted The Eternals
Another theory that tries to explain the Eternals' absence in Endgame's pivotal and iconic final battle, this one comes courtesy of Redditor LilMon. Perhaps the simplest explanation why these almighty individuals didn't help is that Thanos dusted all of them.
Returning to Earth all at once, they struggled to answer Dr. Strange's multidimensional call for help. It might be a bit farfetched to believe they were all dusted, but stranger things happen in the MCU every day.
The Eternals Decided Not To Fight Against Thanos
In the debate about why the Eternals didn't show up in the battle, Redditor ProfessorBeer goes one step further and proposes that they had no reason to participate.
The user proposes that once the dusted Eternals came back, they analyzed the situation and decided not to interfere. The Redditor states that an average Avengers-level threat, a la Loki or Ultron, is not enough for the Eternals to participate. Furthermore, Thanos has been dead for five years at the time of the battle, and they don't know a previous version of the Titan traveled in time to reach the Avengers compound. In short, they lacked enough information and made the conscious choice to let the Avengers deal with the issue.
The Eternals Are Phase 4's Antagonists
Perhaps the wildest theory out there, Redditor Daytman believes the MCU is setting up the Eternals as Phase 4's villains. The thesis is overly detailed, showing the user's commitment to supporting it. In short, the user believes there's no space for the Eternals in the Avengers, but they work perfectly as Anti-Avengers.
The user further supports their theory by saying that the theme for Phase 4 will be compelling antagonists instead of one-dimensional villains. It's certainly an intriguing thought that could be a game-changer for the MCU, but fans will still have to wait four more months to see if there's any truth to it.