Kit Harington is one of the big names making his Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) debut in this release.
The 34-year-old British star plays Dane Whitman, a seemingly regular Joe who works at the Natural History Museum in present-day London. He also happens to be the love interest of Sersi, a member of the Eternals.
There is a lot to look forward to with the promise that 'the Marvel Universe will never be the same.'
A great challenge
In an exclusive interview with Rojak Daily, Kit stated that he finds himself, at times, transporting to his 14 or 15-year-old self to reflect on where he is today.“Being in this situation – promoting a huge movie that I'm part of, having had the wonderful career to date that I have – that's thrilling. And to be in this, as far as eyes that see my work go – just the sheer amount of eyes that are going to see my work – you cannot beat the MCU.
"And that just thrills me, so I'm very excited to be here,” he beamed.
The responsibility to take on a movie of the MCU scale is no joke. Great challenges lie ahead.
Chloé Zhao, the director and screenwriter, could attest to this.
When asked what the biggest challenge was in bringing the world of the 'Eternals' to life, she unhesitantly pointed to Kit only to follow it up with a big laugh, stating that he was “the easiest.”
On a serious note, the Beijing-born director mentioned that learning to have patience was the most difficult obstacle for her.
She explained, “I come from filmmaking where things move really fast. I have an idea and just right away, execute. There are five people to do it, so the ideas usually are the kind of ideas five people can accomplish.”
“In this case, you're told you can have whatever ideas you want most of the time. And so, I will have these crazy ideas. And then you take 500 people to accomplish that, so you kind of have to wait. And really setting limitations for yourself is actually crucial for a film like this.”
An inclusive representation
'Eternals' also brings with it an inclusive representation – a quality which Kit is most proud of.
He recalled a chat he and Angelina Jolie had with several young people in Rome where he met a deaf child who was moved by the portrayal of Lauren Ridloff's character, Makkari, who is deaf.
“He asked us 'Why put a deaf superhero on screen' and that really moved me and Angelina. And I think that that's throughout this movie, whoever you are as a young person, you go see this movie, you find yourself in it – most likely. That's not always the case. And I think that's huge,” he noted.
The movie also gave Chloé a perspective on the ideals of masculinity and femininity.“Personally – since this is quite a personal take on it – I think I struggle with the idea of feminine strength in my life because being a woman and a director in this industry or just in life, really, you feel like it's easier to protect yourself when you hold on to your masculine strength because that's usually viewed as strong.
"And I think in this film, especially within the genre of superhero films, we really are celebrating the feminine strengths – not just in women but also in men,” she said.
On the important question one would be keen to know after watching the movie – that is whether Kit would actually want to be a giraffe – he answered, “You know what? Yes. And I'll tell you why – my little son, my boy; he's nine months old. He’s got a little Teddy giraffe and he's got a giraffe on his wall and he loves them. So yeah – for him, I want to be a giraffe.”
That's just soooooooo cute!
Marvel Studio's 'Eternals' follows a group of heroes from beyond the stars who had protected the Earth since the dawn of man. When monstrous creatures called the Deviants, long thought lost to history, mysteriously return, the Eternals are forced to reunite in order to defend humanity once again.
You can now catch Marvel Studio's 'Eternals' at all cinemas nationwide.