Guardians Of The Galaxy Accidentally Spoiled Eternals’ Cliffhanger Ending

Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special has an Eternals Easter egg that unwittingly spoils one of the MCU’s biggest Phase 4 cliffhangers. The GOTG Holiday Special Easter egg is a weird misstep for a franchise so obsessed with details. James Gunn’s penultimate Marvel movie (unless he defies expectations and returns despite his DCU leadership role) is a delightful festive treat, typically big on heart and laughs. It also contains hefty revelations for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3, including the reveal that Mantis is Star-Lord’s sister and what Cosmo the Space Dog’s powers look like.

While the second Marvel special presentation (after Halloween’s Werewolf By Night) is best considered a bonus to the mainline MCU, James Gunn has confirmed the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special is canon and needs to be watched before Vol 3. That canon status makes the fact that a background detail confirms Kingo’s presence on Earth particularly confusing. It may only be an Easter egg, but Kingo’s fleeting appearance suggests he survived Arishem’s abduction in Eternals‘ final moments and Earth must have passed the Celestial’s ominous judgment.

GOTG Holiday Special’s Kingo Easter Egg Explained

In The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, Mantis and Drax are initially thwarted in their attempt to find and kidnap Kevin Bacon, and turn to hard liquor and dancing. As they walk towards the nightclub (which real club Boardners stands in for), a poster for a holiday show – called Kingo’s Christmas – appears on the corner of Cherokee Avenue and Hollywood Boulevard (next to the famous Musso & Frank Grill) suggesting the controversial hero’s fate after Eternals ending is already assured.

While it makes sense that interest in Kingo would be heightened if the Eternals’ exploits were public, that depends on a huge assumption that the MCU simply doesn’t back up. The only other mention of Kingo came in Ms Marvel, in which he was only referenced as a Bollywood actor, and not a superhero (a curious oversight if his true identity were known). In other words, Kingo’s Christmas cannot be advertising an older show being rerun as a recording to capitalize on his fame. From the design of the poster, it also seems clear it’s advertising a one-man stage show.

How GOTG’s Kingo Appearance Spoils Eternals’ Ending

If Kingo is back on Earth in 2025 (when the GOTG Holiday Special is probably set), we already know that Arishem freed him and his fellow captive Eternals. The Celestial takes Sersi, Phastos, and Kingo to examine their memories and pass judgment on Earth – presumably at the World Forge. For Kingo to be performing his Christmas show, Marvel has accidentally confirmed that he is sent back to Earth. Even if Arishem’s judgment is not complete, the Celestial seemingly has not punished Kingo for the Eternals’ betrayal and their thwarting of The Emergence. For the sake of a flash of recognition in the background of The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, that confusing spoiler or plot-hole – depending on how it’s ultimately explained – seems strangely uneven reward.