Kumail Nanjiani reveals he sought therapy following negative feedback for Marvel's Eternals

Kumail Nanjiani, known for his role in the movie Eternals, revealed that he sought therapy after being deeply affected by negative reviews of the 2021 Marvel film. Despite months of intensive training for the role, the movie did not live up to expectations and received mixed reviews from critics. Nanjiani admitted that he was overly concerned about what the critics would think, and it took a toll on him mentally. The burden was amplified by the fact that the press tour took place during the COVID-19 pandemic. Nanjiani expressed his belief that external factors contributed to the harsh critique and that it was not a fair assessment of the film's quality. Feeling unsupported and unjustly treated, he decided to seek counseling to cope with the emotional impact. His wife, Emily V Gordon, also acknowledged the distressing effect it had on him. Nanjiani and a colleague from the movie recently discussed their shared experience and agreed that it had been a challenging time for both of them. Eternals, directed by Chloé Zhao, generated high anticipation but ultimately received a disappointing 47% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. It also earned the lowest score among all Marvel Cinematic Universe films in the audience survey Cinema Score. While some critics praised Zhao's ambition and the film's diversity, others felt it fell short and lacked power. Nanjiani, along with his wife, previously earned an Oscar nomination for their romantic comedy The Big Sick in 2018. The actor's experience with negative reviews echoes sentiments expressed by other performers in the industry, such as Melissa McCarthy and Jennifer Lawrence, who have also spoken about the impact of criticism on their mental well-being.