It’s no secret that Harry Styles is now a member of the Marvel Cinematic Universe! The singer continued his budding acting career with a surprise role in the November 2021 movie Eternals.

For months it was rumored that the “Watermelon Sugar” singer would appear in a Marvel movie, but his appearance wasn’t confirmed until a tweet from Variety film writer Matt Donnelly went viral.

“Big reveal from #TheEternals premiere — Harry Styles has joined the MCU as Eros, brother of Thanos,” he wrote at the time.

Before Eternals hit theaters, the movies stars stayed tight-lipped about the possibility of Harry in the film. Kit Harrington fielded questions about the former One Direction member while appearing on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon in August 2021. The actor said he had “no idea” about the rumors surrounding Harry’s role.

“Unless I’ve been recast and he’s playing my part — not a clue,” the Game of Thrones alum quipped at the time. “No comment. … I hear he’s a great guy. … Lovely chap, I think. I don’t know. I’ve never met the guy.”

Harry himself stayed mum about the role as the movie premiered while he was taking the stage in various cities during his 2021 Love on Tour. Eventually, he spoke briefly of the role during an interview with Dazed Magazine, which was released in November 2021.

“I’m only in right at the very end,” Harry explained. “But who didn’t grow up wanting to be a superhero, you know? It was a great experience and I’m so grateful to have gotten to work with [director] Chloé [Zhao].”

The director, for her part, has been the most vocal about Harry’s role and event spilled some tea on how he was cast.

“Harry as Eros was very much a package deal for me,” Chloé shared during a November 2021 interview with Deadline, explaining that the idea for Eros came along after “the idea of Pip the Troll,” which was voiced by Patton Oswald. 

“I love the idea of exploring an Eternal who is beyond Titan and who may have influenced Thanos throughout the years the same way Eternals influenced us, earthlings,” the director added. “And then, it wasn’t like I suggested Eros, and let’s go find actors. I kept tabs on Harry since Dunkirk, I thought he was very interesting. After meeting him I realized he is that character — the same way I cast the rest of my cast. There’s so much of Eros in him. For me, if he says yes, and [Marvel boss Kevin Feige] says yes, then it’s a go. And I’m very happy they both did.”

Scroll through our gallery to see behind-the-scenes photos of Harry from the Eternals set. 

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