Hayley Atwell established herself as a fan favourite in 2011's Captain America: The First Avenger, leaving Marvel Studios no choice but to bring her back into the fold.
That started with a fun "One-Shot" short and, following an Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. cameo, Marvel Television launched the Agent Carter TV series (the only one of their shows that Marvel Studios executives were actively involved with).
Years later, Peggy was made the face of Marvel Animation's What If...? as a Variant of the character who took the Super Soldier Serum and became "Captain Carter." She also struck a chord with fans, so her live-action debut in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness was cause for celebration. Until it wasn't.
She died in short order and, confusingly, the Captain Carter who died at the Scarlet Witch's hands was another very similar Variant and, ultimately, a waste of that long-awaited debut. After all, did the Captain not deserve better than being sliced in half by her shield?
Talking on Reign with Josh Smith (via Screen Rant), Atwell reflected on her "blink and you miss me" cameo as a member of the Illuminati and said she took "umbrage on the fact that she has that brilliant line, 'I could do this all day,' then she's Frisbee'd to death with her own shield, and I'm like, 'she's so undermined.'''
"It just got...pulled out from her. And it's a kind of...a funny moment," she continued. "I never want to step on anyone's toes and really respect everyone's skill set."
However, when she offered some technical feedback to filmmaker Sam Raimi, it appears the Spider-Man director didn't appreciate one of the movie's actors stepping on his toes.
"I remember, like, looking at the frame and going, 'Oh, the lighting's [...] quite harsh.' [...] I remember going up to, to a very lovely person who was in a very high position there, and I won't name and shame, but I was like, 'Oh, do you think maybe we could... Can I offer you a possibility that I actually come in from that side and suggest if I did that line there,' and I just came up with an offering technically, which I love doing, because a lot of directors will go, 'Oh, great, try something.'"
"In this particular instance, he went, 'Oh, sure, Hayley, I'll just tell our Oscar-winning editor that you have some choices you'd like to make. And, yeah, don't you worry about that. I'll make sure he gets a memo.' And I went 'Well, considering he's an Oscar-winning editor, he will know a good idea when he sees one, so I'm sure he will enjoy listening to what I have to say to make the scene better.' And the director kind of went, 'Oh, I'm just kidding. I'm just bullying you. Don't worry.' I went, 'You can't bully me. I've got a jetpack on.'"
While it sounds like it was a relatively light-hearted interaction, Atwell's experience on the Doctor Strange sequel sounds largely negative and Raimi seemingly didn't take her feedback well. Despite that, she says it still gave her the confidence to "[be] able to just find a way [to go], 'I'm going to be a little bit bigger here. I'm going to say I've got an idea. I think it's better than the one you've come up with. Respectfully, if you would like it."
You can watch the full interview with Atwell in the player below.