MCU fans and music fans got a nice surprise in the mid-credits scene in Eternals when Harry Styles made his MCU debut as Starfox, aka. Eros. Fans of the singer/actor were thrilled to see him included in the ever-expanding superhero franchise and are no doubt eagerly awaiting his return to the screen, but the character’s creator is telling us that we may want to hold back on the adoration: Eros might not be as good as he is handsome.
Jim Starlin has created many well-known comic book characters including Thanos, Gamora, and Shang-Chi. He also created Eros back in 1973 when he first appeared in The Invincible Iron Man #55. The character is a member of the race of Eternals, which we have already been introduced to, and is the brother of Thanos, oft serving as a foil to the death-obsessed villain in the comics. Eros, in opposition to his brother, is a carefree hedonist, exploring and adventuring while working his way through numerous women. His powers, along with the normal Eternal abilities such as strength, durability, and combat abilities, include psychic manipulation the ability to manipulate emotions. This occasionally lands him in hot water in the comics and may be a reason to be wary of the character.
Speaking about the introduction of his characters on the big screen, Starlin told Inverse that though he knew Eros was being adapted, he had no idea that Pip the Troll, also his creation, was also along for the ride. “I knew Eros was coming but I didn’t know about Pip, which is really surprising and funny, because for the last three or four years, every time I see Kevin Feige, I’ve lobbied to get Pip in there. He never said a word. He’s very close-lipped.”
Where Pip will serve as the “comic relief” along with bringing his own abilities to the table, it’s Eros we need to keep an eye on according to Starlin. “Eros… he’s an interesting one. I have no idea what they’re going to do with him.” Of course, the MCU doesn’t always stay 100 percent true to the source material, and with so much to work with they may pick and choose what aspects of the character from the comic they want to bring to the screen. But, according to his creator, the character has a darkness to him that may be utilized.
“I sort of left him as a sociopath and he is sort of a sexual predator. So I’ll be curious to see how the MCU Eros fares up against the other one. Especially in this day and age. So that’s always a tricky one.”
Comic book fans wonder what will be made of the character without the mad Titan Thanos on the scene as the two serve in opposition to one another and many of their comic book stories revolve around each other. Starlin says the characters were inspired during a psychology class, saying, “We had a guest lecturer who was talking about the Freudian concepts of Eros and Thanos. That’s where they both came from. Thanos to begin with because the dark side always appeals to me more than the light side. And after that, Eros.”
He also said the “playboy Eros” came simply from the name, with Marvel developing him into a sexual predator independent of Starlin. When he returned to the character he wanted to twist him into more of a sociopath, “Because I figured if it comes from the same strain as Thanos, there’s got to be something wrong.”
It is yet to be determined which version of the character we will see when he reappears again further down the line. Starlin believes that thanks to the multiverse we may get a chance to see him interact with his brother. He also believes that Adam Warlock also makes an interesting opposition for the character, especially with the casting of Will Poulter in the role, “Thanos and Warlock also have a lot in common and have an association, and they got a fairly good star for Adam Warlock.”
Harry Styles and MCU fans will just have to wait and see what is in the works for the powerful, and potentially villainous, character. For now, they can only speculate.