Are Marvel Studios in damage limitation mode with Eternals already? The upcoming cosmic epic comes to theaters on Friday, where it’s still tracking for a solid opening weekend in the $80 million range, although that’s down from earlier estimates that pegged it as the pandemic’s first $100 million debut.
The Rotten Tomatoes score has also rebounded slightly over the last couple of days, but jumping from 59% to 60% is hardly stellar stuff, although it has avoided becoming the cinematic universe’s first Rotten installment, at least for another few days.
In a new interview with The Toronto Sun, producer Nate Moore revealed that the intergalactic epic doesn’t necessarily need sequels to be viewed as a success in its own right, which is typically the opposite of the MCU’s entire business model.
“It’s not something that is a must-have. Obviously, we have ideas of where we could go, but there isn’t a hard and fast rule where we have to have three of these things and this is the first. I think the Infinity Stones fell into our lap and really helped connect things in ways that felt unexpected and earned. If you just watch Eternals, you can enjoy Eternals, you can understand Eternals and you’re good to go.”
Looking at the facts, every single standalone effort in the MCU’s history has either generated at least one sequel, or has a second installment on the way, with the exception of The Incredible Hulk. Eternals was evidently designed with multi-film potential in mind, but if the box office numbers aren’t up to scratch, it could go down in the history books as a very rare misfire from the biggest game in town.
