In a bombshell reveal, it turns out that audiences almost didn’t get a relationship that has proven to be one of Marvel’s most popular—all because of the studio’s habit of beginning filming without a finished script, or one they have to do heavy rewrites for mid-production. However, once they stopped making movies and began filming series, it became even clearer that this strategy wouldn’t work for them anymore, and they had to pivot.
That pivot? Hawkeye. The series went through a major creative overhaul just as filming was about to begin, according to Andrew Guest, a writer for the show. Guest spoke with The Watch podcast, detailing the phone call he received from Joe Russo, whom he’d worked with on Community, asking if he could help reform Clint Barton and Kate Bishop’s team-up. “We start shooting in New York in a week and a half, and we want to rewrite the whole thing,’” he says he was told by Trinh Tran, an Executive of Production & Development at Marvel.
Hawkeye Could Have Gone Very Wrong
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“I came in towards the end. I mean, they had had a writer’s room. They had rewritten [the show] after that writer’s room a couple of times. I was literally the last call they could make to anybody. They want to make sure they shoot something and that they actually make it. And then I think there is this belief that we can ‘Fix it as we go.’ And that was very much the case with Hawkeye.” He went on to elaborate, detailing some of the prevalent issues that would likely have cost the show its success. “You know, Hailee Steinfeld’s character was written too young. The dynamic between her and Jeremy [Renner] wasn’t there. There was a lot of extra twists and turns that were sort of gumming up the works. I needed their help as much as they needed mine. And we got through that process.”
And it was a good thing they were able to make these changes; the relationship between Kate Bishop and Clint Barton has gone on to become one of the series’ more iconic dynamics, as has Kate herself. The series ended up earning a 92% critics’ score and generated tons of excitement for characters who are sure to be even more compelling once they take center stage in their own stories. Erin Maxwell of LA Weekly sums it up best, saying, “Though the show lacks the depth of Wanda or the far-reaching implications of Loki, it has a humanity that makes its material easier to relate to.”
What do you think of the version of Hawkeye we almost got? Let us know your thoughts in the comments. And then head over to the ComicBook forum to see what other Marvel fans are saying.