A great deal of Marvel Cinematic Universe fans tend to operate under the impression that any star associated with a previous series would jump at the chance to reprise their role and become part of canon once again in a Disney Plus series or feature film. While that’s definitely the case to a certain extent, it doesn’t extend to Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. veteran Iain De Caestecker.
Charlie Cox and Vincent D’Onofrio were evidently champing at the bit to renew their hostilities outside of Netflix, but not everyone is quite so keen. Despite winning a legion fans for his seven-season stint as Fitz in the beloved show, De Caestecker revealed to Digital Spy that he would likely say no were he asked to make a comeback, before explaining why.
“I think I would say probably no. And not that I didn’t have a fantastic time doing it. I think, after everything that happened to those two characters [Leo Fitz and Jemma Simmons], they really gave them a happy ending. And I think it would be so sad to mess with that again. It’s not fair. I’m not sure they would survive it this time. So I like the idea that they’re living a life of normality outside of the S.H.I.E.L.D.”
That’s going to be a bummer for the huge number of fans holding out hope for Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. to be reintegrated into the mainline MCU, or even get a reboot or revival of some sort. On the plus side, De Caestecker does at least side with the folks who adhere to the belief the series is part of continuity already, stating that Phil Coulson’s presence means “you would kind of have to say it is canon”.