'Eternals' Will Feature MCU's First Openly Gay Character

Although Tessa Thompson opened up about Valkyrie’s bi-sexual orientation during the 2019 San Diego Comic-Con and the Russo Brothers confirmed Joe’s character in Avengers: Endgame was gay, Marvel Studios head honcho Kevin Feige revealed that Eternals will feature the Marvel Cinematic Universe‘s first openly gay character.

Sitting down with Good Morning America, Feige confirmed the news by sharing, “He’s married, he’s got a family, and that is just part of who he is,” Feige said, although he did not clarify which character he was discussing. He also implied that the so far unnamed character’s sexual orientation would not be a focus of his story, but would act as a piece of a larger story. In April, it was believed that Hercules would be the first openly gay character in the film. New rumors are suggesting it will be Ikaris, played by Richard Madden.

Eternals wil star Angelina Jolie, Salma Hayek, Richard Madden, Kumail Nanjiani, Brian Tyree Henry and the recently confirmed Kit Harington and Gemma Chan. The film will release on November 6, 2020. Thompson’s Valkyrie won’t return to the big screen until Thor: Love and Thunder hits theaters on November 2021, meaning Eternals will beat her to the punch.

In more entertainment news, these are the 15 most exciting projects we learned about from Disney’s D23 Expo.

.@Disney's EPIC surprises! From #LizzieMcGuire to @DisneyFrozen 2 to @starwars #TheRiseOfSkywalker to #BlackPanther 2 — @Ginger_Zee has ALL the highlights!

Find more on all the incredible #D23Expo announcements here: https://t.co/EutVh4kPAM pic.twitter.com/P7jo6cfhDP

— Good Morning America (@GMA) August 26, 2019

A closer look at the cast of Marvel Studios’ THE ETERNALS on stage at the #D23Expo pic.twitter.com/bTSkoXh6xI

— Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) August 24, 2019