Marvel Studios has revealed the official synopsis for The Eternals, the second of two Marvel movies launching in 2020 along with Black Widow. It confirms the names of the movie's villains, and that the story follows on from the universe-saving brawl that was Avengers: Endgame.
It also provides one-line bios for each of the movie's superheroes, and explains the rough premise of The Eternals: that they're aliens who have been hiding out on Earth for many, many years, who are finally coming out of hiding. You might already know that the cast features two Stark brothers from Game of Thrones, with Kit Harrington playing Dane Whitman, AKA the Black Knight, and Richard Madden playing Ikaris.
The Eternals isn't the most prolific of Marvel's superhero teams when it comes to the comics, and the favored modern version of the characters is the miniseries by Neil Gaiman and John Romita Jr from 2006. The movie's villains are the Deviants, who like the Eternals were created by the god-like Celestials, and are a kind of rival species. They're called "mankind's most ancient enemy" in this synopsis.
It's definitely on the more unconventional side for a Marvel superhero team, then, but the studio has never had a single box office misfire. When we see a trailer, we'll probably have a good sense of the tone they're going for in The Eternals.
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The Eternals: official synopsis
Here's the official synopsis in full:
"Marvel Studios' The Eternals features an exciting new team of Super Heroes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, ancient aliens who have been living on Earth in secret for thousands of years. Following the events of Avengers: Endgame, an unexpected tragedy forces them out of the shadows to reunite against mankind's most ancient enemy, The Deviants.
"The outstanding ensemble cast include Richard Madden as the all-powerful Ikaris, Gemma Chan as humankind-loving Sersi, Kumail Nanjiani as the cosmic-powered Kingo, Lauren Ridloff as the super-fast Makkari, Brian Tyree Henry as the intelligent inventor Phastos, Salma Hayak as the wise and spiritual leader Ajak, Lia McHugh as the eternally young, old-coul Sprite, Don Lee as the powerful Gilgamesh, Barry Keoghan as the aloof longer Druig, and Angelina Jolie as the fierce warrior Thena. Kit Harrington was cast as Dane Whitman.
"Directed by Chloe Zhao, who helmed the critically acclaimed Sundance film The Rider, and produced by Kevin Feige, The Eternals opens in U.S. theaters on November 6, 2020."
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