At long last, the gay character that will be featured prominently in Marvel’s upcoming film The Eternals has been revealed. According to our sources – the same ones who told us about the She-Hulk series back in April and that Ewan McGregor would be returning as Obi-Wan in May – the MCU’s first openly LGBTQ superhero will be none other than Ikaris. The role will be played by Game of Thrones alum Richard Madden, who took on the part earlier this year. And just as Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige promised, the character will apparently be married with a family.
As fans will know, The Eternals is expected to be the studio’s most inclusive effort since Black Panther. Aside from the historic inclusion of a member from the LGBTQ community into the cinematic universe, the flick will also be introducing the MCU’s first deaf superhero. Feige has repeatedly assured fans that diversity is the future of what Marvel wants to do onscreen and now, it’s official.
The top executive has also claimed for a long time that he’s wanted to include a gay hero in the canon. Ikaris may not be a household name as of yet, but it’s guaranteed that he’ll become the talk of the film industry once the movie premieres. The character created by Jack Kirby first popped up in the comic book Eternals #1 back in July of 1976 and he’s depicted as a member of a human-like race known as the Eternals.
Unfortunately, this news is likely to come with an outpouring of bigotry from Marvel’s more ignorant fanboys. After all, when it was announced that Avengers: Endgame would feature a modicum of LGBTQ representation, the close-minded homophobes came out in droves to make sure the world knew how unhappy they were. Thankfully, though, the majority of the country doesn’t care what those people have to say.
Ikaris will no doubt become a role model for kids and adults all over the world, as a huge segment of the population will finally feel represented on the big screen in one of the most popular franchises in cinematic history. It’s been a long time coming, no doubt, but it looks like Marvel is finally taking a big step towards progress with The Eternals.