Kumail Nanjiani has shared that the bad reviews for Marvel's 2021 blockbuster "Eternals" pushed him to see a therapist.
The actor opened up about the impact the criticism had on him during an appearance on Michael Rosenbaum's podcast, "Inside of You."
"The reviews were bad, and I was too aware of it. I was reading every review and checking too much," he said, according to the Guardian.
Directed by Chloé Zhao after "Nomadland," "Eternals" garnered much excitement. Trailers showcased its expansive plot and visuals, avoiding excessive CGI, surprising Marvel's Kevin Feige. The cast, including the franchise's first gay and deaf characters, was celebrated for its diversity.
But the film drew lukewarm reviews at best, and received a CinemaScore of B, making it officially the lowest-rated Marvel Cinematic Universe film.
"It was really, really hard," said Nanjiani, "because Marvel thought that movie was going to be really, really well reviewed, so they lifted the embargo early and put it in some fancy movie festivals and they sent us on a big global tour to promote the movie right as the embargo lifted."
Compounding the situation was that the press tour took place during the COVID-19 pandemic.
"I think there was some weird soup in the atmosphere for why that movie got slammed so much, and I think not much of it has to do with the actual quality of the movie," he said.
"It was really hard, and that was when I thought it was unfair to me and unfair to [my wife] Emily, and I can't approach my work this way anymore. Some s**** has to change, so I started counseling. I still talk to my therapist about that.
"Emily says that I do have trauma from it," he added, referencing his wife, Emily V. Gordon. "We actually just got dinner with somebody else from that movie and we were like, 'That was tough, wasn't it?' and he's like 'Yeah, that was really tough', and I think we all went through something similar."
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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