Avengers: Age of Ultron - Where was Hawkeye During the Fall of SHIELD? - IGN
You've Come This Far...
Plus, could Hawkeye appear in a Marvel TV series or his own franchise?
We're less than two months away from the release Avengers: Age of Ultron -- the piece de resistance in Marvel's Phase 2, setting up the events of Phase 3, including Civil War, Spider-Man's entry to the MCU, Black Panther, and more.
IGN had the opportunity to visit the set of the Joss Whedon-helmed sequel, along with a small group of other journalists. While there, we talked to Hawkeye himself, Jeremy Renner, about his bigger-and-better role in the new movie, where his character's been since the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D., and what the future might hold for Clint Barton...
Question: One of the biggest questions that came out of Captain America 2 was, because S.H.I.E.L.D. was falling, where was Hawkeye? Are we going to get a definitive answer to that question? Jeremy Renner: You'll know in this movie where he's been, yeah. It's actually a really wonderful secret reveal. It's pretty awesome. Question: How is Hawkeye dealing with the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D.?
& I don't think S.H.I.E.L.D. was ever really that important to him.
Renner: My take on it is, it's probably a good thing. He's kind of a loner anyway. He's only a team player because he sort of has to be. He's not really a company man. Cap can be that guy, I guess, but Hawkeye is his own man. A lot will be revealed with a few simple scenes [in Age of Ultron]. You'll understand why he thinks the way he thinks. But yeah, I don't think S.H.I.E.L.D. was ever really that important to him. Fury's awesome. [Hawkeye] likes Fury and will do anything for him, but he doesn't just punch in and punch out.
Question: How does Hawkeye differ in this movie compared to the first Avengers? Renner: It's a lot of the stuff that Joss and I talked about to doing on the first one, but it just didn't work out that way. So, it was really exciting for me and Joss to dive into the character a little bit more...There are some wonderful secrets, and relationships deepen. And there's a lot more for him to deal with -- versus the hypnotized version of [Hawkeye].
Question: Hawkeye seems very cynical and skeptical. How does he react to something like Vision coming up? Renner: I mean, he's always very skeptical of new people. It's a military kind of thinking in the sense of like, I have to trust that you have my back when I'm trying to manifest something up here. You have to work as a unit, as a team, otherwise we all fail, or I die, or somebody else dies. So that's where the skepticism comes in. It's not to just to be grumpy or not like somebody. It's all there for a reason, and that plays a lot into this movie. Question: Does he still have a strong connection to Black Window for that reason? Renner: Yeah, of course. They have a long, long history together, and there's more of that revealed in this as well.
Question: What was your reaction when you first got the script? And how much changed from when you first got it to when you were actually filming? Renner: The bones of it were always there, and the script that we got was really solid and great. Then as we went along, there were more things we found and, as in any movie, there's a lot. There's so much to cover. I don't know how Joss does it. All I have to focus on are small, little parts. Like I ask, "What the heck's being built over me?" And I have no idea what's going on. [Laughs] I mean, this world all the things going on in this movie are just so vast.
But I think for the most part the script is what it was when we started, and you make minor adjustments to here and there for clarity. Like I said, it's a big, big, big movie.
Question: By its nature, Hawkeye is a very physical role. He was very involved in that final battle sequence -- without even having powers or tech like some of the others. Renner: That's the fun part. Question: Yeah, but how has that changed in this movie? Is it more physical? Does it feel like it's you trying to keep up with the other Avengers? Renner: Yeah, but I've done a lot of that stuff already. We still have a couple more sequences to go. You have to be a smart fighter when you don't have super powers, and that's what makes [Hawkeye] super, in [his own] way. He has to use his mind as much as his physical ability, his ability to never miss.
Question: In terms of the action, Chris Evans was talking about consciously really wanting to evolve Cap's fighting style. Was that the same for you?
& I know how to do real human stuff. [Laughs] I don't know how the other guys do that superhuman thing.
Renner: Yeah... There's always new tech and new costumes and new things, and there's always new abilities. For instance, if Hawkeye's a distance guy, what happens when he's up at close quarters? We did a little of that in the first Avengers, but having to use arrows and just enhance having to do different things like that. You have to be nimble and... clever with things. Clever fighting is what I like to explore -- and then using each other. Like if it's Cap and me and, say, Widow in the scene, how we can use each other's abilities to [enhance our own] -- you know what I mean? It's teamwork. Say, you toss me up higher or -- and that's where these new characters are great, too, like Scarlet Witch. Question: Do you have a personal favorite Avenger? Renner: I think they all have their own cool things about them, [but] there's no other part I'd rather play then the one I'm doing. [Clint Barton] is a real human being, and I know how to do real human stuff. [Laughs] I don't know how the other guys do that superhuman thing. Continue on for more of what we can expect from Hawkeye...
IN THIS ARTICLE
Marvel's Avengers: Age of Ultron
When Tony Stark jumpstarts a dormant peacekeeping program, things go awry and Earth’s Mightiest Heroes are put to the ultimate test as they battle to save the planet from destruction at the hands of the villainous Ultron.
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