Gemma Chan Explained What Makes Her Hero in Marvel’s Eternals Unique

Gemma Chan is one of the biggest actresses out there. After starring in Crazy Rich Asians, Chan became a household name and has time and time again shown just how talented she is. And now, as we gear up for Marvel’s Eternals, Chan is giving us a bit of an insight into her character and her journey in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Chan spoke with Vogue about her involvement in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the upcoming Chloé Zhao film Eternals, and gave fans a deeper look into her character and her relationship with the Marvel world as a whole. This isn’t the first time that Chan has been in the MCU. She first appeared in Captain Marvel as Minn-Erva, and Chan didn’t think she’d be back so soon. “First of all, I never expected to be back in the MCU. So that was a surprise. And then to be working with an East Asian female director – I would never have dreamt of that, even just a few years ago.”

Eternals is groundbreaking for the MCU not only because of its diverse cast but for having the Oscar-winner as its director. Zhao is known for her beautifully scenic films, and the trailer for Eternals is no different. And what Gemma Chan had to say about her character did get me incredibly excited (and I was already pretty excited).

Chan is playing Sersi, an empath and a being who is sort of immortal, and she talked to Vogue about how she isn’t your run-of-the-mill superhero.  “Sersi is not your typical superhero: she’s not necessarily the best fighter, she doesn’t have the most obviously impressive powers. The main thing is she’s an empath. She has a connection with humans, and with the world and the earth. That is her strength, so I leant into that.”

But Sersi also has an important relationship with Richard Madden’s Ikaris, the two sharing a bond that spans thousands of years, and Chan opened up about that dynamic and bringing their relationship to life. “Between us, she and Ikaris are kind of immortal soulmates. That was a fun thing to play. Over a span of a thousand years, how do you play a normal relationship? The good thing is, Richard and I have known each other for over 10 years.”

All of this is honestly fun to hear about Eternals. Right now, they’re a bit of a mystery to fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. They’re just characters we know from the comics, but we don’t know how they’re going to play into the MCU as a whole. In the comics, the Eternals do deal with the Avengers and play a part in major events throughout the comic world, but that hasn’t been the case in the MCU, and it’ll be interesting to see how they’re woven into the already existing fabric of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and how Sersi will interact with other characters around her.

Eternals is currently set to come out this November, and I can’t wait to see what it means for Gemma Chan’s Sersi and beyond!

(image: Marvel Entertainment)

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