Asian American woman tabbed to direct Marvel's 'The Eternals'

SCREEN CAPTURE / GOLDEN GLOBES

Chloe Zhao tabbed do helm a Marvel blockbuster.

ASAM NEWS

AN UP AND COMING Asian American director has landed in the big time.
Marvel Studios has hired Chloe Zhao to direct The Eternals, reports The Hollywood Reporter.

The big-budget Marvel film is a departure from the independent films Zhao has built her reputation on. Zhao is best known for directing two award-winning independent films. Her latest, The Rider, won the Directors’ Fortnight Award at the Cannes Film Festival. Her debut film, Songs My Brothers Taught Me, received three nominations from the 2016 Independent Spirit Awards.

Sources told Variety that Marvel was so enthralled with Zhao that the studio moved quickly to nab her before she landed another job.

Her rise comes at a time much attention has been made about the lack of women directors in Hollywood.

“I want to make sure the people who work with me want to work with me-not to fill a quota,” Zhao told AsAm News earlier this year. “I understand each woman has to be an individual.”

The Eternals is considered Marvel’s next potential franchise. It has hired Matthew and Ryan Firpo to write the script. The Eternals takes place a million years ago. Genetic experiments on humans are being conducted by the Celestials. The story will include a love story between Ikaris, who has cosmic energy, and Sersi, who hangs with the humans, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

A part of Disney-owned Marvel's intention to have half of its future projects helmed by women, Zhao is the third woman to helm a Marvel project based on its comic book superhero characters. The upcoming Captain Marvel starring Brie Larson is being directed by Anna Boden (who directs with Ryan Fleck) and Cate Shortland directs Avengers star Scarlett Johansson in the Black Widow solo movie currently under development.

Views From the Edge contributed to this report.
______________________________________________________________________________