Marvel star Kumail Nanjiani reveals his MCU multi-movie contract has yet to materialize four years after Kingo’s debut in Eternals. Kumail Nanjiani and ten other actors entered the Marvel Cinematic Universe in Chloé Zhao’s Eternals, where the ten тιтular heroes and Dane Whitman witnessed the return of the Deviants and the Celestials. Yet, none of them have returned.

In an interview with Mike Birbiglia on the Working It Out podcast, Kumail Nanjiani revealed that he signed on to play Kingo “for six movies,” “a video game,” and even “a theme park ride.” Despite preparing himself to reprise his MCU role for over a decade, Nanjiani admits “none of that happened.” Read Nanjiani’s full quote below:

“I had a year and a half at home to just be like, ‘Oh, when this thing comes out…” And it came out and it got really bad reviews and it didn’t do that well. It shattered me too much and that’s when I was like, ‘Oh, I need to like go to therapy to figure this out.’

It’s a movie called Eternals, you know, big Marvel movie. I was like, ‘Oh, this is going to be my job for the next 10 years.’ I signed on for six movies. I signed on for a video game. I signed on for a theme park ride. They make you sign up for all this stuff. And so you’re like, ‘Oh, this is the next 10 years of my life, so I’ll be doing Marvel movies every year, and then in between I’ll do like my own little things, whatever I want to do.’ And then none of that happened.”

What Kumail Nanjiani’s Kingo Comments Mean For The MCU

Kumail Nanjiani’s Kingo is one of Eternals‘ most memorable additions to the MCU’s hero roster. Kingo’s rich cultural background, centuries-long Bollywood career, and ultra-versatile superpowers gave him enough potential for multiple MCU appearances. Unfortunately, Kingo didn’t even return for Eternals‘ final battle. Only The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special and Ms. Marvel have referenced Kingo so far.

The Eternals tend to distance themselves from the conflicts of most other heroes, even in the source material. However, characters like Sersi, Kingo, and Makkari should at least have made a cameo by now. Worse, Eros’ debut in Eternals‘ mid-credits scene and Blade’s voice cameo in Eternals‘ post-credits scene have led nowhere in four years.

It’s no secret that Marvel Studios has left Eternals behind. None of the Eternals were included in Avengers: Doomsday‘s cast announcement, and none of them have been featured as supporting characters in crossovers or team-ups like Thunderbolts* and Spider-Man: Brand New Day. There’s a small chance one of the Eternals returns in Avengers: Secret Wars, but that still would mark six years without a single appearance or cameo.

Our Take On Kumail Nanjiani’s Kingo Comments

Outside the MCU’s main continuity, What If…? season 3 episode 2 featured a different Kingo variant. Nanjiani voiced this alternate-universe Kingo, who witnessed Agatha Harkness become a Celestial-level powerhouse. What If…?‘s Kingo received a deeper focus than his main-universe counterpart. However, this version likely won’t be revisited anytime soon, either.

There’s still a chance Kumail Nanjiani’s original Kingo becomes a recurring character, possibly in the MCU’s next saga. Given how crowded the MCU has become, it may take much longer for each actor to complete their character’s arc. On the bright side, Kingo’s defection from the Eternals makes Kumail Nanjiani‘s character more likely to return than the rest of his original team.