As we reported a few months back, Joss Whedon is returning back to television and bringing Marvel along for the ride. The popular scribe behind such shows as Buffy: The Vampire Slayer and Firefly will be overseeing S.H.I.E.L.D., Marvel Studios’ first television series set in their cinematic universe. Luckily enough for all of us, we managed to get our hands on a list of characters that are alleged to be at the forefront of the ABC series, now casting.
You can read the list as follows:
SKYE: This late-20s woman sounds like a dream: fun, smart, caring and confident – with an ability to get the upper hand by using her wit and charm.
AGENT GRANT WARD: Quite the physical specimen and “cool under fire,” he sometimes botches interpersonal relations. He’s a quiet one with a bit of a temper, but he’s the kind of guy that grows on you.
AGENT ALTHEA RICE: Also known as “The Calvary,” this hard-core soldier has crazy skills when it comes to weapons and being a pilot. But her experiences have left her very quiet and a little damaged.
AGENT LEO FITZ and AGENT JEMMA SIMMONS: These two came through training together and still choose to spend most of their time in each other’s company. Their sibling-like relationship is reinforced by their shared nerd tendencies – she deals with biology and chemistry, he’s a whiz at the technical side of weaponry.
None of the roles really appear to be previously-established comic book characters, but it should be noted that Whedon is keen to use fake sides to audition talent. Knowing how secretive the big wigs at Marvel tend to be, there’s a definite possibility that S.H.I.E.LD. could be employing a similar tactic.
Our hope is that the actors and/or characters from the feature films will appear on the show. Whedon, who did a masterful job of tying together Marvel’s standalone films into The Avengers, will very likely ensure that S.H.I.E.L.D. has direct ties to future Marvel Studios cinematic entries. And yes, this should include the Whedon-scripted and directed Marvel’s The Avengers 2, set for release on May 1, 2015.
Props: SuperHeroHype