The imminent debut of mutants and the X-Men in the MCU creates a new opportunity for the Eternals franchise and its unknown future. Rather than building up to some sort of conflict with the Avengers in a Civil War-type crossover, the X-Men could instead become targeted by the Eternals. Based on a new development in Marvel Comics, a crossover between the Eternals and X-Men makes a lot more sense to happen before any kind of battle with Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.
Following 2021’s Eternals from director Chloé Zhao and its poor reception at the box office, the future of the immortal heroes has been a rather big question mark in the MCU. That said, there’s still a desire to see the Celestial-born heroes again, either in their own sequel or in another MCU project. The Eternals also left a giant Celestial head in the ocean which still has not been adequately addressed. As such, the debut of the X-Men may provide the perfect solution for what Marvel Studios can do next with the Eternals.
The X-Men Have A Major Connection To The Eternals’ Classic Rivals
As confirmed in Marvel Comics’ 2022’s A.X.E: Judgment Day event from Kieron Gillen and Valerio Schiti, it’s discovered by the Eternal Druig that mutants in the Marvel Universe share key DNA markers with the Deviants, meaning that they are effectively their genetic descendants. The monstrous creations of the Celestials which the Eternals were made to face as one of their primary directives, the Deviants of the MCU are more animalistic creations with only one gaining full sentience, the Deviants’ leader Kro. However, the Deviants of the original comics are all more intelligent and complex, having their own civilization with a wide range of powers and abilities.
While the watering down of the Deviants in the MCU was widely panned and criticized in Eternals, it may have opened up a future narrative avenue with the X-Men. Considering the fact that the Eternals went to war with mutants due to their Deviant ancestry in Judgment Day, something similar could now happen in the MCU without a potential conflict feeling too redundant due to the Deviants’ more primal depictions on-screen. As such, the Eternals initially viewing the emerging X-Men as a Deviant-related threat could be a dynamic way for Marvel Studios to use the immortal heroes going forward.
More than an adaptation of Avengers vs X-Men, a clash of mutants and Eternals feels like a more compelling crossover ot start off with in the MCU. Likewise, the Eternals themselves may not have a choice in the matter if the Celestials choose to inflict their will upon their creations and want mutants exterminated. At any rate, an evolution as quasi-villains for the new MCU X-Men would certainly be an exciting way to retool the Eternals franchise given its current status of ambiguity.