Marvel’s Eternals keeps aging worse as Disney makes it clear it wants franchises that actually last.
Puck’s Matt Belloni name-drops Eternals while breaking down new Disney CEO Josh D’Amaro’s recent comments about where the company is headed.
D’Amaro said Disney is focused on “investing in I.P. and creativity that breaks through, builds connections, and endures.”
In other words: franchises with staying power.
Disney Wants IP That Lasts
Belloni says D’Amaro is talking about what makes Disney different from Netflix, YouTube, Amazon, and the rest: brands and established IP.
Disney wants movies and shows that can feed the whole machine. Theaters. Disney+. Theme parks. Cruises. Merchandise. Halloween costumes. Target backpacks. Specialty cocktails. All of it.
Belloni points to Toy Story as the model: five movies over 30 years, with IP that still works in theaters, on streaming, in parks, and across consumer products.
Eternals is what happens when the Disney flywheel fails.
Eternals Gets Name-Dropped As A Cost Problem
Belloni argues D’Amaro still has to deal with the high cost of chasing “endurance” and “connectivity.”
Disney spends huge money on its IP films, which becomes a bigger issue if the new normal for Marvel is $400 million to $500 million worldwide instead of automatic billion-dollar hits.
Belloni notes that big marketing spend can make sense when a movie works, but adds that the cost of each attempted Disney “flywheel” spin keeps rising.
Then comes the telling part: Belloni says some of those spins are “invariably gonna lead to Eternals or Tron: Ares,” making nine-figure marketing blitzes look bad fast.
It is not just a casual mention. Eternals is being used as shorthand for an expensive franchise swing that failed to justify itself.
Eternals Was Supposed To Be A New Marvel Pillar
Marvel did not launch Eternals like a small side project.
The movie had an Oscar-winning director in Chloé Zhao, a massive cast, Celestials, Deviants, Black Knight teases, and a post-credit scene with Harry Styles as Starfox.
The whole thing was designed to open a new corner of the MCU.
Instead, Eternals became one of Marvel’s weakest franchise launches. The movie grossed $402 million worldwide, landed the MCU’s first rotten score on Rotten Tomatoes, and failed to create the kind of demand that forces a sequel.
Marvel movies do not just need to make money. They need to make fans want what comes next.
Eternals did not.
Eternals 2 Still Isn’t Happening
Kevin Feige previously said there were no immediate plans for Eternals 2. Reports also stated Marvel was not developing a sequel. Bob Iger was even reportedly said to have viewed Eternals 2 as a guaranteed flop.
Marvel’s actions back that up.
The Eternals characters have not become major MCU players. The giant Celestial in the ocean was ignored for years. Dane Whitman and the Ebony Blade tease went nowhere. Harry Styles’ Starfox has not become a major figure. The sequel setup was left hanging.
Marvel moved on. None of the cast has been announced to be returning in Avengers: Doomsday or Secret Wars. They’ve been put back to sleep.
