Not every Marvel Cinematic Universe project is obligated to feature cameo appearances from familiar faces, but most of them do, because that’s the nature of a franchise that interweaves so many storylines and plot points across film and television.
So far, the only notable returnee confirmed for Hawkeye so far outside of Jeremy Renner’s Clint Barton and his family is Black Widow‘s instant fan favorite Yelena Belova, but there’s every chance the creative team have plenty of surprises in store across the next four weeks.
However, during an interview with The Playlist, director Rhys Thomas admitted that he would have loved to include Paul Rudd’s Ant-Man, based on the chemistry he and Renner have displayed during their MCU interactions so far.
“Oh, that’s a loaded one, because…you don’t want to reveal anything. Here’s one, Ant-Man, obviously, both Paul and Jeremy’s dynamic together, I sort of enjoyed. I enjoyed their press tour dynamic when they were on the Avengers run. And so, he was a character that just felt like a fun way to play it, the absurdity of Clint’s situation. I got to have a little nod to that.”
You could make the argument that it’s a much better option for the roster of Disney Plus shows to forge their own path and lay the groundwork for the next generation of heroes, which is largely what they’ve been doing. WandaVision, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Loki and Hawkeye may have all revolved around MCU stalwarts, but they’ve also managed to introduce a bevvy of new names that are set to become integral parts of the mythology for years to come.