We're only a month away from the release of Marvel Studios' latest, Chloe Zhao-directed blockbuster flick The Eternals, and after being teased for years that the film is going to showcase some actual and meaningful LGBTQ+ superhero representation, it looks like all of our patience is finally paying off!
In a new teaser spot posted on Marvel's social media channels, Brian Tyree Henry's Phastos, the Marvel Cinematic Universe's first gay superhero, is being greeted by Gemma Chan's Sersi and Richard Madden's Ikaris at his home -- but he isn't alone. By his side are his husband (played by GLAAD Media Award winner Haaz Sleiman) and their cute little son, and it's the kind of moment we've always DREAMED of seeing in a mainstream, big-budget title like this.
"Dad, I saw him on TV with a cape shooting laser beams!" Phastos' son, who the subtitles identify as Jack, says in the teaser when Sersi and Ikaris appear at the family's home.
"I don't wear a cape," Richard Madden's Ikaris replies cheekily to Jack.
Marvel Studios
While we only caught a very short glimpse at the film's queer family, and it didn't seem like much, considering the MCU's long history of being dominated by straight characters, this is actually pretty exciting stuff, especially for LGBTQ+ superhero fans.
"I never in a million years thought I'd be a part of the MCU," Henry told Entertainment Weekly earlier this year about his groundbreaking role as Phastos. "I have always been a huge fan. I've been obsessed with the concept of superheroes and the concept of mankind needing saving. And I think that when you get these group of people together, who just have these intimate senses of super powers and saving humanity, it's something that we all kind of need. It literally brings everyone together regardless of where you're from. I'm still freaking out that I'm a part of it."
The Eternals opens in theaters on November 5.
