Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige has confirmed Eternals features an openly gay superhero. Phase 3 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe came to a close this year with Avengers: Endgame and Spider-Man: Far From Home, bringing its Infinity Saga to an end in the process. Marvel went on to reveal its Phase 4 lineup at San Diego Comic-Con last month, announcing five movies along with five series for the Disney Plus streaming service. It later confirmed Black Panther 2 will help kick-off Phase 5 in 2022 at D23 over the weekend.

Directed by Matthew and Ryan Firpo and directed by Chloé Zhao (The Rider), Eternals is the second Phase 5 film after Black Widow and the first to feature all-new Marvel comic book characters. The movie will explore the saga of the Eternals - a race of semi-immortal beings who've long impacted life on earth - and features a noticeably inclusive cast led by Gemma Chan as Sersi, Richard Madden as Ikaris, Angelina Jolie as Thena, and Salma Hayek as Ajak. And while it was previously rumored the film would include the MCU's first openly-gay superhero, the news is now official.

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Speaking to GMA after Marvel's D23 presentation, Feige confirmed Eternals features an openly-gay hero (a first for the franchise). And although he held off on revealing the character's identity for the time being, Feige explained "He's married, he's got a family, and that is just part of who he is".

Marvel Eternals Cast and Characters

Endgame became the first MCU movie to feature an openly gay character in general this April, with co-director Joe Russo cameoing as a grieving husband. The studio took some criticism for over-hyping what was ultimately a very small moment, but Feige defended the scene, saying it was never meant to be "our first focused character". That honor will go to the openly gay superhero in Eternals, instead. They won't be the only canonically LGBTQ hero in Phase 4 either, as Feig previously announced at SDCC that Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson) will be openly queer when she returns in Thor: Love and Thunder.

In recent years, more and more big-budget franchise movies have either brought openly-LGBTQ characters into the fold or confirmed longstanding characters' queer sexuality. For the most part, though, these reveals have tended to be so minor they're barely noticeable (Star Trek Beyond, Beauty and the Beast 2017), or still largely relegated to subtext only (Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald). The hope, then, is Eternals and Thor: Love and Thunder will buck that trend by making it crystal-clear their queer characters are just that, and having it be an integral part of their lives (the same way, say, Clint Barton's family is part of his). Fortunately, if Feige is to be trusted, then it seems Eternals will do exactly that.

NEXT: Every Marvel Studios Reveal From D23

Source: GMA

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