One of the most underestimated and underutilized Avengers (appearing in just five films in the MCU) finally has his own series, and he's joined by a spunky protege making her first onscreen debut in the MCU. Hawkeye, which stars Jeremy Renner as Clint Barton and Hailee Steinfeld as Kate Bishop, follows the pair of archers as they battle enemies and the holiday blues trying to reunite Barton with his family.
The series' stripped-down, world-weary-yet-plucky attitude has earned it numerous fans who have come to see it as a refreshing change from the more stylized spectacle of other MCU television contributions like WandaVision and Loki. Even though it might seem more modest by comparison, lots of work and grit go into making it so successful, and its behind-the-scenes excitement is almost as intriguing as the series itself.
In the third episode of the series, Clint and Kate try to outrun the Tracksuit Mafia by hotwiring a car and sending them on an exciting car chase through the streets. Along the way, they're dodging bullets from their pursuers as well as giant Christmas inflatables, and adding to the thrill is the shot's smooth single-take transition.
Speaking with Marvel, Jeremy Renner explained that, "All the action, all the players of this car chase sequence, it's all happening in real-time. That's why it felt like a ride and it was really, really, really fun." Being able to provide the authentic, visceral experience of being along for the ride with the characters is what sets this series apart from some of its contemporaries like WandaVision and Loki.
When Clint has to go to great lengths to get his suit back, his quest forces him right in the middle of an epic LARP (Live Action Role Playing) battle going on in Central Park. Not only does he have to prove himself in battle, he has to do so against Vikings and samurai in a battle royale full of plastic helmets and foam swords.
In an exclusive behind-the-scenes video for Marvel Entertainment, Jeremy Renner laughed about the experience, commenting on how cool it was to have "a very grounded character like Hawkeye" suddenly find himself in the middle of something so bizarre. Hawkeye doesn't take itself so seriously and seems to know exactly what sort of series it is, which adds to its popularity.
Hawkeye and Kate Bishop have one of the best relationships in Marvel comics, so in order to properly convey the banter between the marksman and his protege, the two leads had to have good comedic chemistry. Not only are they trying to survive random enemy attacks, but they're also trying to make it through the holidays, which adds its own charm to the already Grinch-y Hawkeye.
In another featurette from Marvel Entertainment, Hailee Steinfeld and Jeremy Renner broke down the secret to their bond; working hard, playing hard, and making each other laugh hysterically between takes. It's clear that their offscreen friendship makes their onscreen one infinitely more realistic.
As spunky Kate Bishop, Hailee Steinfeld brought one of Marvel's most popular young Avengers to life in the series, but it wasn't always easy. Coming off of the period piece Dickinson (in which she played the famous writer Emily Dickinson) required her to transition to an action series, and luckily she had Jeremy Renner (who was also filming the gripping crime thriller Mayor of Kingstown) on hand to show her how to bounce back and forth between drama and action.
As it turned out, getting used to a new genre proved more difficult than perfecting her marksmanship for the role. Speaking to the New York Times, Steinfeld declared that Renner was helpful when it came to her acting, but that when it came to archery lessons, he laughed and said, "Listen, you’re never actually going to shoot the arrow — it will be C.G."
When an actor knows the full story arc of their character, they can engage with specific elements at certain times to make the narrative believable. The cast of Hawkeye wasn't allowed to know what happened to their characters by the end of the season and had to simply perform in the moment week by week.
Speaking with CinemaBlend, Tony Dalton (who portrays Jack Duquesne) said he "wished he knew" what his character's endgame was so that he could know when to convey certain emotions or parts of his personality, but he wasn't allowed, so he was forced to simply fly by the seat of his well-tailored pants. He played his character as both "super smart" and "super stupid" to leave it up to audience interpretation.
The musical, like the LARP sequence, was one of the most fun moments in the series so far. Talking with CinemaBlend, Executive of Production & Development Trinh Tran spoke about how 'Rogers: The Musical went from an idea that was going to be referenced by a character into a full-blown scene involving Clint Barton taking his family to a production that no other Avenger attended.
In many ways, the fact that everyone was invited but no one showed up but Clint represented the way the character has been solitary in much of the MCU franchise. The scene further cemented, in a small way, how singular Hawkeye's character still is, a lone wolf often separated from his fellow Avengers by their notoriety and superpowers. The juxtaposition of Hawkeye's world-weary face and the cartoonish whimsy of the musical conveys how different he is from the pageantry of his friends.
With a cast as large and impressive as Hawkeye's, it can be difficult to assemble everyone together for long stretches of time, and sometimes a series has to make prudent use of its actors as well as certain locations.
According to a Buzzfeed Spotlight on director Rhys Thomas, production was "more like a movie with blocks of time", including shooting in New York for a few weeks and then "jumping all over the place in terms of episodes." This meant that sometimes actors shot scenes from one episode with one director in the morning, and then another director with different scenes in the afternoon.
In order to emotionally ground the characters of Kate Bishop and Hawkeye, the very first episode of the series focused on the Battle of New York, where a young Kate watched Hawkeye protect her city and her admiration for him took seed.
In the same interview with Buzzfeed, Thomas went on to say that while most of the footage shot for the New York sequence was new, the "iconic moment of Jeremy running and that bit where we see him on the roof" were pieces of old footage from The Avengers. By using old footage from a significant moment for Hawkeye and the Avengers, the series connects to the larger tapestry of the MCU in a way that is unexpected and shows how much Hawkeye has changed.
For Clint Barton and for Jeremy Renner, family comes first. He will only sign on to something if its schedule allows him to spend time with his daughter Ava, so Hawkeye, like any new project, had to factor into his family life, not the other way around.
According to a cover story in Men's Health, Renner was flying back and forth between MCU projects and only permitted a few hours with his daughter (who was born in 2013), and eventually, he prioritized her so much he told Marvel Studios to recast his character if his schedule didn't allow time to see her every week. In many ways, it's that family-oriented, stubborn, candid aspect of Renner that makes Hawkeye such a beloved figure in the MCU, especially when compared to the rest of the Avengers who don't have a family to come home to.
After Jeremy Renner wrapped on Avengers: Endgame in 2019, he found it difficult to keep in fighting shape. Like many people over the last few years, he embraced "sloth life", but had to come out of hibernation if he was going to jump into action as Hawkeye again.
In the same story for Men's Health, Renner explained that “I got, I wouldn’t say fat, but a little lazy,” which was difficult to overcome once he needed to go back to doing his stunts. He went on to say, "It took me two months of working out just so I could get enough energy to be in the stunt gym," putting into perspective the level of dedication and athleticism required to bring a Marvel superhero to life.
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