A major Agents of SHIELD star had conversations about appearing in Marvel Cinematic Universe movies. Over the past year, Marvel confirmed that Netflix’s The Defenders Saga was canon to the MCU. However, the studio has yet to do the same for the series that arguably had the most connections to the franchise, as Agents of SHIELD‘s seven seasons brought in multiple characters from Marvel movies and often reacted to events from several MCU films, with Captain America: The Winter Soldier notably having a huge impact on the show. A hero from the series could have even jumped to the movies.
Speaking with The Direct, Mockingbird actress Adrianne Palicki revealed that when she joined Agents of SHIELD, she had talks about starring in a spinoff series or appearing in MCU movies. Palicki would end up filming a pilot for the planned Mockingbird spinoff. However, Bobbi Morse’s solo series would never see the light of day, which Palicki believes was part of a larger Marvel/ABC shake-up. At the moment, there are no plans for Mockingbird to return in future MCU releases, but Disney+’s Hawkeye included a Mockingbird Easter egg. Check out the full quote below:
“The conversation I had when I signed on actually to ‘Agents of SHIELD’ was either I was going to be participating in the films or have a spin-off.
And we did a spin-off that we shot, which is actually great, but I think it was at the time where ABC was literally getting rid of all of their Marvel shows. Like, ‘Agent Carter’ got taken off the air, our show didn’t get picked up, ‘Agents of SHIELD’ was on the verge of syndication, so it stayed on.”
Mockingbird Would Have Been A Great Addition To Marvel’s Films
Palicki’s reveal is interesting. While Marvel Studios has yet to claim that Agents of SHIELD is canon to the MCU like it did with Charlie Cox’s Daredevil and the Netflix Marvel shows, it is clear that the series was initially made with that in mind. Characters like Samuel L. Jackson’s Nicky Fury appearing in the show only helped cement that fact. As such, Palicki’s Mockingbird was conceived as a character who Marvel thought had the potential to jump from the small screen to the big screen. Interacting with Jeremy Renner’s Hawkeye could have been a fitting story.
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In the comics, Hawkeye and Mockingbird have been married. The MCU went for a different path, with Clint building a family with Laura Barton, who was seemingly revealed to be SHIELD’s Agent 19 in Hawkeye. That is Mockingbird’s designation in the comics, so it seems like the MCU decided to quietly make Laura its Mockingbird, further distancing the franchise from Agents of SHIELD. Since Palicki’s talks to join MCU movies happened when she was cast as Mockingbird over a decade ago, and Hawkeye has since teased another direction for the character, the actress’ return for future MCU projects looks unlikely.
Marvel Studios Missed An Exciting Opportunity
I’m sad that we never got to see Palicki’s Mockingbird on the big screen. I’m a fan of her dynamic with characters like Hawkeye and Ka-Zar in the comics. I also enjoyed Agents of SHIELD‘s Bobbi Morse, so it would have been exciting to see the show acknowledged in the MCU’s movies through her. Sadly, since Marvel opted to develop a Mockingbird spinoff that ultimately was not made instead of putting her in a film, I think that ship has long sailed, and we will not see Palicki’s Mockingbird again, which is a shame for Agents of SHIELD fans.
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Source: The Direct