Eternals' Rotten Tomatoes Score Is Struggling To Stay Fresh

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Marvel's Eternals has movie critics divided as its Rotten Tomatoes score dangerously hangs around the site's "rotten" territory and even dipped into it at one point. The superhero film is the latest installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Directed by Chloé Zhao, it features an ensemble cast including Angelina Jolie, Salma Hayek, Gemma Chan, Richard Madden, Kit Harington, Kumail Nnajiani, Lia McHugh, Brian Tyree Henry, Lauren Ridloff, Don Lee, Harish Patel, and Barry Keoghan. It introduces a new group of super-powered beings of an immortal alien race who were sent to Earth thousands of years ago to secretly guide and protect humanity. Events after Avengers: Endgame will force them out of hiding as they try to stop a cosmic threat.

 

After years in development, Eternals made its highly-anticipated world premiere October 18. It will officially hit theaters on November 5 as part of the MCU's Phase 4 slate. Since the movie's first teaser was released, Eternals wowed Marvel fans with stunning visuals and an epic multi-dimensional storyline. However, early reviews have been less than positive. Eternals Rotten Tomatoes score initially landed at 64%, which is surprisingly low for a Marvel movie.

Black Widow & Eternals Have The Same MCU Formula Problem

Over a week since its premiere, Eternals is finding it hard to stay fresh on Rotten Tomatoes. Its score dipped to 59%, making it the first ever MCU film to have a Rotten score on the website. Now, Eternals is currently at 60% with a total of 119 reviews, making it lowest-rated film in the history of the MCU. The second lowest is  Thor: Dark World, which has a 66% rating on the Tomatometer. Most reviews praised Eternals for its elaborate world-building but criticized it for its overly complex and somewhat confusing plot.

 

An ambitious superhero epic that soars slightly more often than it strains, Eternals takes the MCU in intriguing -- and occasionally confounding -- new directions.

Interestingly, Eternals is coming after two highly successful Marvel films that were released this year. To compare, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is favorably ranked on the review aggregator at 92% with an almost-perfect audience score of 98%. Meanwhile, Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow has a 79% freshness rating and a 91% audience score.

 

It is crucial to note that Eternals' Rotten Tomatoes standing can still dramatically change once the film opens in theaters. In less than one week, Marvel fans will be able to decide for themselves how Zhao's creative judgment will shape the future of the MCU. Also, a movie's rating does not necessarily dictate its commercial success. With its stellar cast and solid fanbase, Eternals is still guaranteed to be a blockbuster hit for the franchise.

 

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