How Eternals’ Costumes Are Different To Other Marvel Superhero Suits

Costume Designer Sammy Sheldon Differ and Costume Effects Supervisor Ivo Coveney explain the look of the costumes that the characters wear in Marvel Studios’ Eternals, and how they differ from all other Marvel superhero suits. Eternals is the 26th film of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which began all the way back in 2008 with Iron Man. Since then, Marvel Studios has put out many critically and financially successful movies, with Avengers: Endgame grossing $2.79 billion alone. The massive universe also began expanding onto Disney+, giving fans new shows to enjoy between film releases. While Marvel Studios had an off year in 2020 due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, 2021 has seen a variety of movies and shows released, with Eternals being the newest addition to the MCU.

Directed by Academy Award winner Chloé Zhao, the movie will introduce a whole new team to the MCU. The cast includes Richard Madden (Ikaris), Gemma Chan (Sersi), Salma Hayek (Ajak), Kumail Nanjiani (Kingo), Barry Keoghan (Druig), Angelina Jolie (Thena), Lauren Ridloff (Makkari), Lia McHugh (Sprite), Ma Dong-seok (Gilgamesh), and Bryan Tyree Henry (Phastos). Together they make up the Eternals, a group of immortal, cosmic beings created by the Celestials. The Eternals are then sent to Earth by the Celestials to defend it from the Deviants.

During Screen Rant’s visit to the Eternals set in January of 2020, Costume Designer Sammy Sheldon Differ and Costume Effects Supervisor Ivo Coveney discussed the looks of the Eternals’ costumes. They are vastly different from costumes that audiences have seen in previous MCU entries. Through these exciting new costumes, Eternals is setting itself up to be the most different-feeling MCU movie yet. Check out Differ’s comments on how they approached the costumes below:

Sheldon Differ: “We wanted these to feel organic. So, we’re hoping that when you see them in the film you go, ‘what is it’ and not, ‘I can see that’s armor, or it’s a Spandex suit, or something with a print over it that makes it look like in a mesh or something.’ We wanted to create something with a bit more artistic and organic and we talked a lot with Ryan in the VisDev department about what the intention was with the surfaces, and is it metal, is it color, is it – you know there’s a lot of to and fro and then experimentation. Because they definitely weren’t this straightforward. Here’s the concept, let’s just make it. It’s been a long journey of collaboration and experimenting.”

The explanation from Differ definitely shows how much time, effort, and thought Marvel Studios is putting into this movie. Right from the start, Eternals has felt like nothing audiences have seen before, and the costumes alone are a visual representation of that. The costumes deviating from the norm will certainly breathe new life into the post-Endgame era of the MCU. Audiences have surely been wondering how the Marvel movies would create a new identity for themselves after Phase 3, and this seems to be the answer.

The otherworldly effect that the Eternals costumes have are sure to please. The unidentifiable materials used and the experimentation that went into the costumes definitely work to make them look like they’re from another part of the universe. This fits with the franchise straying away from the traditional superhero movie and leaning into its sci-fi roots. If the costumes are anything to go off of, Eternals is leading the MCU in an entirely new direction.

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