MCU Star Defends Marvel’s Major Flop After Film Led Him To Therapy: “I Wouldn’t Change Anything”
Eternals star Kumail Nanjiani defends the infamous 2021 superhero film after it failed both critically and commercially. Directed by Chloé Zhao, the MCU movie features Nanjiani as Kingo, one of a number of immortal beings on Earth who have shaped its history. Speaking on NPR’s Wild Card podcast, Nanjiani, looks back on Eternals, explaining that it affected how he now approaches his work, and that the experience is something he’s “very grateful for.” The Silicon Valley star has been candid about the film’s failure in the past, previously revealing that it even led him to therapy and that he originally had signed on for six films as Kingo. “I’m very proud of my performance in it,” Nanjiani now tells host Rachel Martin. “And it’s rare to say, but I actually wouldn’t change anything about how I am in that movie.” Part of the reason Nanjiani is grateful for Eternals is that it taught him how important it is as an actor to separate “my experience of something versus the result of something.” Nanjiani goes on to explain this in more detail, expressing how important it is not to focus on the aspects of a movie he can’t control. Check out his explanation below:
“Most times if I’m acting in something, I do not get to decide how good it’s gonna be. I do not get to choose how the audience is going to receive it. I do not get to choose how much money it’s going to make. I do not get to choose what the reviewers are going to think of it. What I do get to choose is whether or not I learned from it, you know? So to me, that’s been a thing that I have to remind myself over and over and over and over – is that a failure is not a failure. It truly is an opportunity to learn… What I can control is learning from every job and taking a joyful approach to every job.”
Eternals released at an interesting time for the MCU. Not only were the effects of the pandemic still being felt, but it arrived three years after the release of Avengers: Endgame, a film that served as the culmination of more than ten years’ worth of storytelling.
Kingo smirking in costume in Eternals
The films that followed, including Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019), Black Widow (2021), Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021), and Eternals, were a mixed bag of attempts to wrap up certain storylines while introducing the characters that would carry future phases of the MCU. It’s Eternals, however, that stands as the biggest failure of the bunch, and a sign of MCU troubles to come. Eternals has only a 47% on Rotten Tomatoes from critics, one of the lowest scores for an MCU movie at that time. The Popcornmeter score is higher at 77%, but this didn’t translate to audience turnout at theaters. Despite a stacked cast that includes Angelina Jolie, Gemma Chan, Richard Madden, Salma Hayek, Kit Harington, Barry Keoghan, and Brian Tyree Henry, the film grossed only $402 million worldwide.
Now, of course, in a new era of the MCU in which the films no longer feel as at the center of movie-going culture as they once did, Eternals’ performance doesn’t stand out as much. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023), for example, was a major disappointment, and The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025) was a relatively soft performer at the box office despite positive reviews. The events of Eternals have largely been brushed over in the larger world of the MCU, and it doesn’t look like Kingo or any other characters will be returning anytime soon. Now, the focus is on next year’s Avengers: Doomsday, and 2027’s Avengers: Secret Wars. For Nanjiani, though it’s clear his MCU experience will continue to stay with him.
Release Date
November 5, 2021
Runtime
156 minutes
Director
Chloé Zhao
Writers
Chloé Zhao, Patrick Burleigh, Ryan Firpo, Kaz Firpo
Producers
Kevin De La Noy, Kevin Feige, Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso
Publicado: 2025-12-22 16:05:00
fonte: screenrant.com
