The cast of Marvel’s upcoming The Eternals already had a bonkers talented cast. But if a new report proves true, it’s about to get even more stacked.

The Hollywood Reporter says Gemma Chan is in talks to join the cast that already includes Angelina Jolie, Salma Hayek, Richard Madden, and Kumail Nanjiani. Chan has already previously starred in a Marvel movie with Captain Marvel, where she had a minor supporting role as Kree villain Minn-Erva. It’s unclear if she would be reappearing as Minn-Erva in The Eternals or if she’ll be playing an entirely new character. If she were to play a new character, it wouldn’t be without precedent. There have been a number of Marvel actors who originally had small roles in the MCU who went on to land bigger roles in the franchise – though none admittedly had as much previous face time as Chan did in Captain Marvel.

Still, she barely had any lines to familiarize audiences with her voice and her face was covered in blue paint and faint prosthetics. With a role that either involves her natural face (or entirely different prosthetics) and a decent amount of lines in The Eternals, Marvel could easily flip her into another, bigger role without breaking the audience’s willing suspension of disbelief. Disney is a studio that has proven it loves to work with trusted actors on multiple projects, so perhaps that was part of the deal from the start. Who knows? If Chan does join the cast, it will be a welcome addition, whether as connective tissue with Minn-Erva or a brand-new character.

The Eternals will be directed by Chloe Zhao (The Rider) with a script by cousins Matthew K. Firpo and Ryan Firpo, based on characters created by Jack Kirby (and reinvigorated in the 2000s by Neil Gaiman). The release date is set for November 6, 2020, so we can expect to start hearing final casting and shooting news trickling in over the next few months.

 

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