“The Eternals” will be the first Marvel Studios film to feature a gay hero (Phastos, played by Brian Tyree Henry), but it looks like the decision has not pleased a powerful Eurasian country.
According to Vitaly Milonov, deputy of the Russian State Duma, the feature film should not be shown in national cinemas. Milonov said the production was aimed at “sick and evil” people and that its intention was only LGBTQ + propaganda.
The country has had an anti-LGBT policy for decades, and this is not the first time that a film has been censored by the Russian conservative government. In 2017, it was the turn of “Beauty and the Beast” to win a boycott due to the “explicit” scene in which The Madman (Josh Gad) exchanges romantic glances with another character.
Either way, actor Haaz Sleiman has revealed news about the MCU’s unprecedented choice, saying the film will break new ground in the superhero genre.
“I just shot a Marvel movie with The Eternals’ first openly gay superhero,” he revealed to New Now Next. “My character is married to gay superhero Phastos, played by Brian Tyree Henry, we represent a gay family and we have a son.”
Enjoy watching:
When asked if “ The Eternals ” will feature the first gay kiss in a blockbuster superhero production, Sleiman replied:
“Oh, yes, absolutely, and it’s a beautiful and very moving kiss. Everyone cried on set. For me, it is very important to show how loving and beautiful a dysfunctional family can be. Brian Tyree Henry is a great actor and brought so much beauty to this part. At one point I saw a child in his eyes and I think it’s important for the world to remember that there are gays who were once children. We forget this because we are always portrayed as sexual or rebellious. We forgot to log into this human part. ”
Haaz Sleiman
Discover the first art of the film:
Scheduled for November 2021, the film follows the journey of nearly immortal beings, products of the evolutionary divergence that gave birth to the human race millennia ago. The characters relate to several concepts already introduced in previous universe films, from Celestials (who appeared in “ Guardians of the Galaxy ”) to Thanos, whose own mother was one of his victims.
The cast includes Angelina Jolie (Thena), Salma Hayek (Ajak), Kumail Nanjiani (Kingo), Lauren Ridloff (Makkari), Brian Tyree Henry (Phastos), Lia McHugh (Sprite), Don Lee (Gilgamesh), Gemma Chan (Sersi) ), Kit Harington (Dark Knight), Barry Kheogan (Druig) and Richard Madden (Ikaris).