Namor's Origin Story In Wakanda Forever Has Some Interesting Potential Connections To The Eternals
In "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever," we are introduced to a Wakanda in mourning — as the highly-advanced civilization continues to grieve for their fallen king, T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman). Unfortunately for Wakanda, the world does not slow down amidst the chaos of T'Challa's death, and no sooner have Shuri (Letitia Wright) and Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett) finished their grieving than their country is invaded by Namor (Tenoch Huerta) — the mutant ruler of an underwater civilization known as Talokan.
Longtime Marvel fans will know that Namor the Sub-Mariner is an extremely important character within the comics; being one of the first superheroes ever created for Marvel Comics back in 1939, where he was introduced as the antagonistic ruler of the sunken kingdom of Atlantis. Although some aspects of Namor's origins remain the same in "Wakanda Forever," the majority of his history within the MCU is a stark departure from his history within the comics — as he instead rules over the hidden Mesoamerican civilization of Talokan, which was founded after his people were forced out of their home in Yucatán, Mexico by Spanish invaders.
On top of that, Namor's mutant powers are also given a new origin, as he and his people inherited their powers after ingesting a vibranium-infused plant in an attempt to cure the smallpox that inflicted them (another consequence of the Spanish invasion). In this, the Namor we meet in "Wakanda Forever" is given a remarkably different backstory than the one we know from Marvel Comics history — though this reinvented origin story does have some interesting potential connections to the story of MCU's "Eternals."
It's possible that Druig could have helped build Talokan
One of the most important moments in "Eternals" is the scene in which Druig (Barry Keoghan) abandons the other members of the eponymous superhero team after witnessing the destruction of Tenochtitlan (in what is now Mexico City) in 1521 — deciding that the advancement of human civilization was a grave mistake on their part. In that particular scene, Druig uses his mind control abilities to abruptly end the war for Tenochtitlan and establish a peaceful commune, and it's made clear that he has a strong moral objection to the Spanish invasion of Mesoamerica.
Because the introduction to "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever" indicates that Namor's birth occurred in 1571, it's entirely possible that Druig also had some sort of connection to this assault upon Namor's people by the Spanish invaders. Although it's currently unclear what Druig actually did following his split from the rest of the Eternals (and indeed, the film seems to imply that he established his peaceful commune in Peru and never interfered in human affairs ever again), the fact that the attack on Namor's people also occurred in ancient Mexico makes it very possible that Druig had some part to play in the establishment of Talokan.
Although there's no confirmation of this theory in "Eternals," it's entirely possible the connection between Druig and Talokan could be referenced in future MCU projects, especially since he decided to remain on Earth at the end of "Eternals."
Namor's origin story could link to several other notable Marvel heroes as well
Unfortunately, "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever" also does not clarify whether or not Druig has any connection to Talokan, and rather implies that Namor and his people were able to achieve their near-utopian society due to the influence of the vibranium-infused plant they ingested — mirroring the way in which a vibranium meteorite influenced the creation of Wakanda.
Although this reinvented origin story for Namor is a clear parallel to Druig's backstory in "Eternals," the establishment of Talokan within the MCU could also connect to several other important Marvel characters. Specifically, the way in which the vibranium-infused plant played a role in unlocking the mutant abilities of Namor and his people could hint at a variety of other mutants having their powers unlocked by similar means — potentially opening the door for several members of the X-Men to make their entrance into the MCU, albeit with a drastically reinvented origin story.
Indeed, this new backstory of Namor already has fans buzzing about the potential inclusion of Magneto in the MCU since it appears that the mutant abilities in the MCU function similarly to the super-soldiers like Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) — and the iconic metal-wielding supervillain could have his powers unlocked at any time. All told, there are a variety of different connections that could be made from Namor's exciting new origin story, though for now, we'll just have to wait and see if any of those connections come to fruition within the MCU.