Game of Thrones' Richard Madden Joins Marvel’s The Eternals

It's been a while since Richard Madden played Robb Stark in Game of Thrones, and he's currently getting the spotlight as the lead of Bodyguard. What's interesting is, he's joined the MCU ship and has been cast in Marvel's The Eternals.

According to Variety, Madden will be playing Ikaris in the film, another member of the race of Eternals. Madden will be joining the likes of Angelina Jolie (who is coincidentally playing a character named "Sersi) and Kumail Nanjiani.

With Ikaris being the face of the Eternals in the comics, it's likely that he won't be the lead character this time around. It's been said that Marvel was looking for an openly gay actor to play the lead role of Eternals, and neither the character of Ikaris nor Madden himself is gay. I imagine they can rewrite the character to be a homosexual, but then again, imagine the backlash of having a straight person like Madden cast.

With representation being such a hot-button topic, Marvel is probably aware of the backlash of casting a straight actor as the first gay superhero in their franchise. Then again, Avengers: Endgame featured the first openly gay character in the MCU, and he was played by director Joe Russo, who—after some digging—is probably straight. He does have two daughters, but I can't find anything on a wife or anybody he's currently dating. Maybe filmmaking is his lover.

No release date has been set for The Eternals yet, but the movie is expected to come out next year.

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