Eternals Officially First MCU Movie To Be Rotten On Rotten Tomatoes

Marvel’s upcoming film, Eternals, has given the MCU its first Rotten film on Rotten Tomatoes. Eternals is directed by Chloé Zhao, which is her follow-up to the Best Picture-winning film Nomadland. Zhao earned two historical firsts by becoming the first Asian woman to be nominated for a Best Director Oscar, which she then won. Aside from directing, Zhao is credited as one of the writers for Eternals, which is set to bring a new ensemble of heroes into Marvel’s Cinematic Universe.

Eternals follows a race of immortal beings who have lived on Earth for thousands of years, watching human civilizations rise and fall. Zhao’s film boasts a stellar cast, including Salma Hayek, Angelina Jolie, Kumail Nanjiani, Richard Madden, Kit Harington, and Gemma Chan. Much like James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy, Eternals will introduce characters from the Marvel comics that are largely obscure to general audiences, with the hope for the same level of success. Early reviews for the film, however, spell trouble for those ambitions.

Related: Eternals Review Bomb Proves Marvel Is On The Right Track

On the review-aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes, Eternals currently holds a 57% rating at the time of writing, making it a Rotten film. Though there are already 148 critical reviews counted, the film stands three points shy of the 60% score needed for the Fresh designation. Even the least well-regarded of the MCU’s previous 25 installments has managed to clear that hurdle, making Eternals the first film in the franchise to earn a Rotten score.

Over the past few weeks, Eternals‘ Rotten Tomatoes score has fluctuated between the low-60s and the high-50s as more qualified critics published their thoughts. While it looked like the film may just hang onto a Fresh score, the reviews have continued to trend downward, and at this juncture it’s unlikely that the film will find its way back. Adding to the shock of the low scores is how highly the studio seemed to think of Eternals during its production, touting Zhao’s work as one of the best MCU films produced thus far.

The MCU film that previously held the record for lowest-rated in the franchise was 2013’s Thor: The Dark World with a 66%. While that score is low, it’s still above the Fresh line, and only a single percentage point lower than 2008’s The Incredible Hulk. At the opposite end of the spectrum, the MCU has several films that hold ratings over 90%, with Black Panther being the best-reviewed film at 96% Fresh. Eternals‘ review score is currently only the critics’ rating, as the film is yet to hit theaters, leaving the door open for a better response from audiences. Rotten Tomatoes often has discrepancies in their site’s two scores – Thor: The Dark World, for example, sits at a 75% rating from its non-professional reviewers. Marvel Studios will certainly be hoping to avoid that spilled popcorn graphic when Eternals finally hits theaters on November 5th.

Next: Eternals’ Most Likely Avengers Leader Is Being Hidden By Marvel

Source: Rotten Tomatoes

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