Look, you might have noticed that someone here—me—has a passion for the Eternals. It’s true, I cannot deny it, and I am not ashamed. But even putting that bias aside, after watching the new Moon Knight trailer, as a born and raised Londoner one thing is obvious: Moon Knight A.K.A. Steven Grant A.K.A. Marc Spector (Oscar Isaac) definitely knows at least one of the Eternals. What’s my evidence? How does this atmospheric, gritty, and eerie new series have anything to do with the esoteric sci-fi of Chloe Zhao’s epic masterpiece? It’s all about those museums.
A Vital Change to Moon Knight’s Back Story
The Moon Knight trailer establishes a new backstory for one of Marc Spector’s other personas. In the comics, his Stephen Grant persona is a billionaire businessman. And definitely not a humble, stuttering museum gift shop employee. This change makes sense in the context of Moon Knight’s powers, though. Having him closely connected to a place where Egyptian artifacts are being shown makes sense. But let’s get into some London minutiae here: we see Steven go into London’s famed National Gallery, which is an art gallery. But once he enters, we’re clearly inside the British Museum, with its recognizable open plan gift shops. The British Museum has a bad reputation since much if not all of its artifacts were stolen from other countries. So it makes sense to essentially rid yourself of that connotation. Plus, a traveling Egyptian exhibition explains why Steven’s personality Marc—the one connected to Moon Knight—might wake up.
Now that we’ve established not only some important location details but also how the new change fits in with Steven’s superheroic sensibilities, let’s talk about the real reason it stands out. Making Steven a museum worker instantly connects the series to another Marvel property: Eternals. Remember where Sersi (Gemma Chan) teaches? And, more importantly, it’s where her coworker Dane Whitman (Kit Harrington) locates the Ebony Blade? Well, that’s London’s world famous Natural History Museum. It’s located 2 miles away from the National Gallery. You can get there by public transport in about 25 minutes, or drive there even faster. So, basically, they are very, very close. In a world where superheroes could have any (or no) job, the MCU has within the space of months established two who work in museums only a couple miles from each other.
I refuse to believe that this is a coincidence.
It’s a Small (Museum) World
If Steven works at the National Gallery, there’s a high chance that he also worked at the Natural History Museum. After all, you need experience. I write that as someone who worked in multiple galleries and museums, including the Natural History Museum. Trust me, it’s a small, low-paid world. There’s also the fact that in London, all major museums are free to enter. So even if he hadn’t worked there, then each of them had definitely visited the other’s places of work.
There’s a bigger connector here too other than the realities of capitalism and proximity. Eternals established the new MCU MacGuffin: a big magical sword known as the Ebony Blade. It’s a powerful, ancient, and evil artifact that can warp the mind and soul of the user. It was, until the end of Eternals, kept in a museum. The only person who understands the dangerous weapon is Dane, a famed historian. So now with new artifacts and strange goings on nearby at the National Gallery, wouldn’t it make sense to call on Whitman?
More Magical Artifacts
There seems to be an interest not only in magical swords but artifacts in general right now in the MCU. Wanda has the Darkhold, Shang-Chi gave Wong the Ten Rings, and Moon Knight is potentially powered by his interactions with ancient Egyptian antiquities. This thread seems really important going into the next phase of the MCU. How does this connect to the Eternals? Well, other than the obvious Whitman connection, we know that Phastos is an inventor of artifacts both ancient and modern, and while he’s in the US with his family, his friends are not. So once again, it would not be hard to imagine that Whitman and Sersi had come into contact with Spector, or his other personality Steven Grant who is apparently an avid museum worker.
The Midnight Sons and/or the Marvel Knights??
And then there’s that other guy. You know, the one we heard but haven’t seen yet. I’m talking, of course, about Mahershala Ali’s Blade, who arrives at the Natural History Museum just as Dane is about to touch the cursed Ebony Blade. Could he be interested in Steven Grant’s new abilities? That definitely seems likely, especially as the half-vampire hero is just wandering around London warning people about touching ancient artifacts. Moon Knight, Blade, and Black Knight have always been connected as some of Marvel’s more horror-focused characters. And after Eternals we know that focus is going to be key moving forward, especially with the introduction of Gael Garcia Bernal’s “werewolf” in the upcoming Disney+ Halloween special.
With Dane and Blade already together, it’s not unlikely Dane could suggest a visit to Steven and Moon Knight could become the origin story of one of Marvel’s cult hero teams like the Midnight Sons or the Marvel Knights. The latter is particularly interesting as that was a team that Matt Murdock unofficially helmed, that sometimes included Moon Knight. While the none of these characters were ever all in a singular team together, the fact that the MCU is introducing magical, occult characters, means that no matter what the name, a horror team up is coming to Marvel.
So yes, Dane Whitman and Steven Grant have probably shared a pint. And if not, then Moon Knight will likely connect the future Black Knight, Blade, and Khonshu’s human form.
Featured Image: Marvel Studios
