Eternals Sneakily Introduces A Major MCU Character – Here Are The Details

For those who saw Marvel's "Eternals" last night, it soon became clear that the blockbuster came jam-packed with all sorts of new additions to the larger Marvel Cinematic Universe. These include (but are not limited to) centuries-spanning lore, unabashedly nerdy depictions of the enigmatic and all-powerful Celestials, and, oh yeah, a whole new team of superheroes that has been set up to play a huge role in the future of the franchise. As much as director Chloé Zhao's unique presence in the Marvel machine immediately gave viewers a film they may not have been expecting, well, this is still a Marvel movie and Marvel movies have certain obligations to fill! Chief among those are the usual post-credit scenes that tend to tease new directions for the MCU to go in and new characters who'll bring us on those future journeys. "Eternals" proved to be no exception in that department, as the second scene at the very end of the credits set up one of the most exciting additions to the MCU yet.

As the movie has only just released in theaters, consider this a major spoiler warning for one of the best-kept secrets in "Eternals." And no, it's not the one you're expecting. If you haven't watched it yet, look away now! If you have, join us below.

Still here? Alright, let's get right to it.

Now, general audiences may have been slightly surprised to see that Kit Harington's Dane Whitman didn't exactly have the biggest role in "Eternals." Why get such a recognizable actor, the lead of "Game of Thrones," to play such a small and seemingly unimportant role as little more than a puny, human-sized love interest to essentially a god? Well, that question was roundly answered by the very end of the credits. The first major hint as to the future plans for the character (well, aside from our own extensive coverage, of course) comes when he admits to his lover Sersi (Gemma Chan) that his ancestry is a bit more complicated than originally thought. Before he can elaborate, however, Sersi and the rest of the surviving Eternals are shockingly whisked away by the mightily displeased Celestial Arimesh and the film ends on Dane's confused and terrified face.

Cue the last of the two extra scenes, which sees Dane at his university office pensively looking at an open crate containing a mystical-looking sword. He's drawn to the unusual markings on the blade and is just about to touch it when an off-camera voice suddenly intrudes on him and wryly asks if he's sure he's ready for that. Whose voice does that belong to? Come on, I didn't drop that "blade" pun a sentence earlier for no reason! It's none other than Mahershala Ali, making his first official (if off-screen) appearance in the MCU as the vampire-hunter Blade. That's right, Marvel snuck in a two-for-one deal. The scene exists to tease Dane's transformation into the Black Knight with his trusty Ebony Blade, but we're taken one major step forward to the truly supernatural corners of the MCU with Blade. 

According to Fandom (via Cinema Blend), Zhao confirms the game-changing cameo:

"That was the voice of one of my favorite superheroes, Mr. Blade himself. Blade, Blade, Blade, yeah.

You just have to wait for it. I don't know what they're doing with the movie, but Mahershala is a treasure. It's going to be epic."

Does this mean Harington's Dane will appear alongside Ali in Marvel's upcoming "Blade" film? This scene would appear to tease an intriguing partnership between the two, but it remains to be seen just how Kevin Feige & Co. decide to further establish the famous daywalker.

"Eternals" is currently playing in theaters.