Eternals star Kumail Nanjiani has shared how the polarized reception to the 2021 Marvel Cinematic Universe release took an emotional toll on him.
“I had the best time doing that movie, and I realized this is how work should feel like,” Nanjiani said on the Inside of You with Michael Rosenbaum (per Entertainment Weekly). “However, when that movie came out and the reviews weren’t good, that was very, very tough for me and I realized that too much of how I’m evaluating what I want to do is based on the result of what other people think of it.”
In working on a big MCU production helmed by Oscar-winning director Chloé Zhao, Nanjiani continued by recalling how he felt Eternals would receive universal acclaim during the movie’s promotional tour. When Marvel decided to lift the review embargo early, however, Nanjiani’s expectations were shattered as the actor found himself “reading every review,” which affected him on a personal level. The mixed reviews and moderate box office results of Eternals led Nanjiani to enroll in therapy.
“I think there was some weird soup in the atmosphere for why that movie got slammed so much, and I think not much of it has to do with the actual quality of the movie,” Nanjiani said. “It was really hard, and that was when I thought it was unfair to me and unfair to [my wife] Emily, and I can’t approach my work this way anymore. Some s— has to change, so I started counseling. I still talk to my therapist about that.”
Will there be an Eternals 2?
Since Eternals’ release, Marvel Studios has yet to confirm development on a sequel. Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige has teased future payoffs for the introduction of Thanos’ brother Starfox (Harry Styles) and the frozen Celestial corpse in the Indian Ocean. Despite the mixed reaction to Eternals, Nanjiani remains anxious to reprise the role if Marvel moves forward on the sequel.
“I mean, listen, I have plans today,” Nanjiani said. “I don’t know if they have plans. I would love to come back. But I’m sort of waiting to hear when or if that’s going to happen. I’m hoping I get to do more. I had a great time playing that character. It’d be a shame if he’s a sort of one-and-done. But, you know, the decision’s not mine to make.”
Eternals is now streaming on Disney+.
