Bollywood and dance sequence in a Marvel movie

Oscar-winning filmmaker Chloe Zhao says Kingo in ‘Eternals’ is a character that “loves pop culture and showmanship”, which is why making him a Bollywood star grooving to a “beautiful, joyous dance sequence” in the big Marvel movie felt “incredible”.

The director said Kingo, played by Pakistani-American star Kumail Nanjiani, was always supposed to be a Bollywood hero.

“When I came into the process, there was a treatment and in the treatment, there are always stories and parts that take place in Mumbai. Kingo is a Bollywood star in the present day and I thought that was so interesting because we knew Kingo is going to be a character that embraced the side of humanity that loves pop culture, that loves storytelling, that showmanship,” Zhao said responding to a question from PTI.

On bringing together different cultural elements to a superhero film, the Chinese-American director said the character arc of Kingo is a breath of fresh air.

“It was interesting to see the writers and the Marvel team did not just make him a Hollywood star since we’ve seen him in many times, but really to make him a Bollywood star and also have this beautiful, joyous dance sequence. I thought it’s incredible to include in a big Marvel movie,” she added.

‘Eternals’ introduces audiences to 10 never-seen-before superheroes, played by some of the biggest names in Hollywood such as Angelina Jolie, Salma Hayek, ‘’Game of Thrones’’ stars Richard Madden and Kit Harington, Gemma Chan, Nanjiani and Don Lee.

PTI