![Eternals Director Chloé Zhao Comes Out In Defense Of Superhero Films: "It's Important Not To Write [Them] Off"](/cdn-cgi/image/onerror=redirect,width=640,height=640,format=webp/https://storage.googleapis.com/uploads.mongoosehq.com/url/media/174351141/b61ca794aa8a1d671f402df41c9b5a29b68a7ef53fffb205ee1998d79f01957a)
Overview
- Chloé Zhao spoke at a Venice Film Festival masterclass on Friday and urged people not to write off comic-book and superhero films as lacking artistic value.
- Zhao said she loved directing Marvel’s Eternals and tied the project to an early ambition to be a manga artist, saying comics and manga share archetypal storytelling.
- She rejected a sharp contrast between Eternals and Nomadland, arguing both reflect her interests in landscape, myth and human relationships.
- Zhao acknowledged Eternals’ mixed reception and roughly $400 million global haul on a reported $200 million-plus budget while saying the film was not a top priority for Marvel and that Kevin Feige backed her passion for the project.
- Her comments recast the ongoing debate over whether blockbusters can be ‘high art’ and could make studios more open to directors shifting between intimate dramas and large IP-driven films.