Star of “The Eternals” Kumail Nanjiani talks about the future of his popular MCU character “Kingo” and how fans feel about it. Eternals was released last year and marked Chloé Zhao’s directorial debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The movie introduced the fans to the titular eternal beings who safeguard Earth. The film’s star-studded cast, including Angelina Jolie, Salma Hayek, Don Lee, Barry Keoghan, Lauren Ridloff, Brian Tyree Henry, Lia McHugh, and Kumail Nanjian, joins the Marvel ranks as the Eternals, ushering in a bright new era for the MCU.
The events of “Eternals” span seven thousand years. However, the film is mostly concerned with the present day, when the heroes have disbanded and are leading “regular human” lives on Earth. Nanjiani plays the likable Bollywood actor Kingo, who can’t function without his loyal butler Karun. With his family at stake, Kingo ultimately decides he cannot fight alongside his fellow Eternals as they face off against Ikaris (Madden) in the film’s climactic showdown (Madden). Although Nanjiani’s actual MCU future is somewhat unclear, Kingo has been referenced within the MCU since his appearance within Eternals, including some recent set photographs from Loki season 2 in which Kingo was featured on an in-universe poster.
The future of Eternals’ Kingo within the MCU was discussed by Nanjiani in a recent interview with Collider when he stated that he has “no idea what’s going on.” However, the actor confirms he wants to come back. Still, he isn’t sure if Kingo will ever be brought back into the MCU> Meanwhile, he also gives high marks to Marvel’s upcoming Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and expresses enthusiasm for the franchise’s future. Read on for the rest of the quote from Nanjiani:
I’m completely in the dark. I have no idea what’s going on. Truly no idea what’s going on. I genuinely don’t know when or if Kingo is coming back to the MCU. I really have no idea. I’m just really excited about the direction they’re going. The new people they’ve cast are really good. I just saw the new Black Panther movie, and I’ve never seen a blockbuster like that. That’s so complicated and tragic in so many different ways, but also really fun and funny and thrilling. So, I think they’re really stretching and doing some great stuff right now. I’d love to come back and do stuff, but I genuinely have no idea.
The possibility of Eternals’ coming back to the MCU
Audiences may assume that the Eternals will return in the sequel Eternals, while little is known about the film’s production status beyond Patton Oswalt’s vague confirmation. Still, there are several opportunities for these characters to show up in various forms during Phase 5 of the MCU. Given that the Eternals had an end-credit scene that provided a direct link to this highly anticipated MCU project with Mahershala Ali delivering a vocal appearance, many have hypothesized that the Eternals could return inside the tale of Blade. In addition, many fans expect a large number of MCU heroes to appear in the two major movies of Phase 6, Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars. Others have theorized that the Eternals will play a role in both movies.
Unfortunately, Nanjiani’s remarks do not provide new information about Kingo’s or the Eternals’ potential futures. However, it’s possible that even if he did know, he would be unable to share the details at this time. Even while Phase 5 of the MCU will provide multiple opportunities for the Eternals to become important players in the MCU’s overarching narrative, it is still completely unknown what plans Marvel has for these potent characters. Many fans are hoping that Kumail Nanjiani will return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe in the future. With these other projects having confirmed Kingo’s existence after the events of “The Eternals,” we can only hope that it will only be a matter of time before his post-Eternals presence is confirmed.
