Joss Whedon Explains AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. Connection To The Larger Marvel Cineamtic Universe

Joss Whedon Explains AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. Connection To The Larger Marvel Cineamtic Universe

Executive producer and pilot director Joss Whedon comments on how Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. will link up with past and future events unfolding across the larger Marvel Cinematic Universe.

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By MarkJulian - May 17, 2013 07:05 AM EST
Filed Under: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.



A new interview has surfaced from the ABC upfront presentations [via TV Fanatic] with Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Executive Producers and The Avengers 2 director Joss Whedon. Below, Joss talks about how the television show will link up with what's occurring in the Marvel movies. The background noise makes it a little hard to hear Joss so I've also included a transcription.




"Everything has to push 'character' forward, including action. We don't want 'spectacle' characters, we want some spectacle that addresses character. We always want the two to mix.

We're absolutely on top of all the movies. We never contradict, replicate - we will be flowing in between them, maybe occasionally we'll throw something in that foreshadows [or] echoes but we're very much beholden to the Marvel Cinematic Universe."

And it just wouldn't be an interview with Joss without some funny snark. When asked 'How long it would take for what happened to Agent Coulson to be revealed, whether it will be revealed right away or parceled out,' Joss simply responded with, "Yes."

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Clark Gregg reprises his role of Agent Phil Coulson from Marvel’s feature films, as he assembles a small, highly select group of Agents from the worldwide law-enforcement organization known as S.H.I.E.L.D. Together they investigate the new, the strange, and the unknown across the globe, protecting the ordinary from the extraordinary. Coulson's team consists of Agent Grant Ward (Brett Dalton), highly trained in combat and espionage; Agent Melinda May (Ming-Na Wen), expert pilot and martial artist; Agent Leo Fitz (Iain De Caestecker), brilliant engineer; and Agent Jemma Simmons (Elizabeth Henstridge), genius bio-chemist. Joining them on their journey into mystery is new recruit and computer hacker, Skye (Chloe Bennet).

Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Marvel’s first television series, is from executive producers Joss Whedon (Marvel's The Avengers, Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Jed Whedon & Maurissa Tancharoen, who co-wrote the pilot (Dollhouse, Dr.Horrible's Sing-Along Blog). Jeffrey Bell (Angel, Alias) and Jeph Loeb (Smallville, Lost, Heroes) also serve as executive producers. Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is produced by ABC Studios and Marvel Television.
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DCjohnny
DCjohnny - 5/17/2013, 7:23 AM
i wonder where shield was during the entire iron man 3 movie....
(in first two movie they kept on popping up for small damage control)
JoeMomma29
JoeMomma29 - 5/17/2013, 7:26 AM
I really hope this show is good. And I hope they are not just bankin on luring people in to watch it based on on statements that it is all linked the movies etc...

ABC is known for the pulling the trigger very fast on shows.
JoeMomma29
JoeMomma29 - 5/17/2013, 7:28 AM
@ SotoJuiceMan

I doubt they are going to put any big time heroes in this show. It is going to be more obscure and sub characters. I am confident they will make references to major heroes and villains etc.. I am sure they may show photos in files etc....

Which I am completely fine with that direction because it is only a t.v. show.
UltimateTypeface
UltimateTypeface - 5/17/2013, 7:29 AM
"spectacle moment"?

I thought that would be a good thing
FEJ
FEJ - 5/17/2013, 7:31 AM
I predict cameos by marvel characters. Probably the secondary characters.
CaptainAmerica1945
CaptainAmerica1945 - 5/17/2013, 7:36 AM
Aside from bringing Coulson back from the dead, no contradictions at all!!
Gmoney84
Gmoney84 - 5/17/2013, 7:38 AM
Joss has the right idea with being connective with this film universe. I'd love to go to work as a consultant.
FoxForce5
FoxForce5 - 5/17/2013, 7:38 AM
@ fettastic: you do realize that it's only a "contradiction" if there's no explanation, right? That's obviously not the case here...
ComicFan1134
ComicFan1134 - 5/17/2013, 7:41 AM
Eh....Cool, I guess.
ggo2588
ggo2588 - 5/17/2013, 7:46 AM
@DCJohnny...My thoughts exactly. Stark gets sick and lets Rhodes take War Machine, and Fury shows up for a lecture. Tony Starks home gets BOMBED, Stark disappears and is presumed dead, "Iron Patriot" get compromised...AGAIN, and super strong blowing up baddies are running around, yet theres no word or an appearance from SHIELD or Fury?!? There were plenty of missed opportunities, which led to a HUGE disappointing IM3.
Tymminator
Tymminator - 5/17/2013, 7:47 AM
This show will be awesome.
ruadh
ruadh - 5/17/2013, 7:50 AM
@FoxForce5

I agree mostly, but I also suspect that Coulson's revival will be a mystery not solved immediately. Might be something the audience doesn't get all the info about until the season finale.
NoAssemblyReqd
NoAssemblyReqd - 5/17/2013, 7:50 AM
It sounds like there are two camps of opinion on this show: those who want it to be a big superhero and villain extravaganza with everyone from the Marvel Encyclopedia making an appearance, and those who want this show to be its own thing, only touching upon the known Marvel U. in a tangential way, if at all.

Just from the trailer alone, I think we're going to get both. Some episodes will deal with a villain or hero of the week, while others will focus on completely self-contained adventures (the big transport plane has me thinking we'll get some FIREFLY-ish stories). Other episodes will tie into the BIG stories from the movies. In other words, there will be a little something for everyone -- the show won't be lacking in variety.

I see this as a Joss Whedon show which just happens to take place in the Marvel Universe, and I am totally down with that.
ruadh
ruadh - 5/17/2013, 7:51 AM
Aw nibs...I was lucky that Firefly was the first thing of his I saw, and it's so awesome. Then I tried Buffy and quickly realized I was not the audience for it.
Gmoney84
Gmoney84 - 5/17/2013, 7:51 AM
I'd love to see A-Bom again!! Only thing I'd change would be explaining that Blonsky continued to mutate and make him look more like the comic version with the pointy ears and such. A nice cross between comic and film would be nice.
DaMarval
DaMarval - 5/17/2013, 7:53 AM
Give it a chance, this will be good. They will use it to introduce lesser known hero's and if the public falls in love with one, you can expect them to have a role in a movie. Not a solo movie though.
126thst
126thst - 5/17/2013, 7:53 AM
@Monkeyballs Outside of Nick Fury and maybe Maria Hill, SHIELD agents aren't supposed to be interesting, the program as a whole is. Coulson was a main piece connecting the Marvel movies, and a lot of people enjoyed his dry humor throughout. Coulson's death in Avengers was anything but unemotional, and I think choosing to bring him back for this show is a sign of how popular the character was. Why go through the hassle of having to explain a character returning after death if he was not interesting and unemotional?

Have a little less asshole for breakfast tomorrow..
TheAbomination
TheAbomination - 5/17/2013, 7:54 AM
Can't wait for them easter eggs.
Gmoney84
Gmoney84 - 5/17/2013, 7:57 AM
I love how the guy with the Superman avatar is dogging Marvel. Big freakin' surprise!
megabatfan
megabatfan - 5/17/2013, 7:57 AM
The TV series should have been based in the time period Phase 1 took place in, leading up to The Avengers.
My reasoning is that in the TV series, they'll have to explain that Coulson didn't really die & that he's alive & well. Fine.
But in Avengers 2 (or possibly Cap 2), they will have to cover that again. Because not everyone who watches the movies are gonna be watching the TV series.
In which case they're gonna either:
- gloss over the explanaiton (ala Thor's return to Earth in The Avengers, despite the Rainbow Bridge being destroyed) or,
- go over the very explaination indetail which they would have already covered in the TV series.
BlanketMan
BlanketMan - 5/17/2013, 8:01 AM
@monkeyballs: Have you seen "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Thor's Hammer?" It portrays the most bad-ass Coulson on celluloid.
Gmoney84
Gmoney84 - 5/17/2013, 8:02 AM
I've got a great idea! How about we watch the show when it airs and then decide if it's good or not??? Ya know, like normal ppl do.
NoAssemblyReqd
NoAssemblyReqd - 5/17/2013, 8:03 AM
Wasn't one of the big complaints about IRON MAN 2 that it had too much S.H.I.E.L.D. (ie. too much AVENGERS-foreshadowing, Easter egging fan service)? IRON MAN 3 only gives S.H.I.E.L.D. a brief mention and now fans are all in a twist about why they weren't involved?!
Gmoney84
Gmoney84 - 5/17/2013, 8:03 AM
How was his death stupid? Please explain? IMO it served a major point of the film that help progress the plot. Please objectively state how it was stupid.
ablee337
ablee337 - 5/17/2013, 8:05 AM
I hope the Punisher appears in an episode.
ruadh
ruadh - 5/17/2013, 8:06 AM
@nibs...right on! I'll tell you, with the pilot, I actually watched the first few minutes and turned it off. Little cheesy, but tried the entire episode later on. I also found out the opening sequence is something the network made Whedon include, so... I'd say give it a half hour, and if it doesn't grab you enough to get you to continue, maybe move on to Train Job (2nd episode), which was done almost as a secondary pilot (good introduction to the characters/relationships, but perhaps more actiony...also funny as usual).
megabatfan
megabatfan - 5/17/2013, 8:07 AM
Don't know why people on this site feel you have to be either DC or Marvel. Why can't you be both? I'm a megabatfan and found TDKR was disappointing... & so was IM3 to me. Doesn't mean that they were horrible movies, they just disappointed me.
I get exactly what monkeyballs is trying to say.
goldilocks
goldilocks - 5/17/2013, 8:08 AM
God bless Joss Wheedon!
hiluxsurf2002
hiluxsurf2002 - 5/17/2013, 8:13 AM
The lack of SHIELD in IM3 needs to be explained, otherwise Feige thinks the general public and comic fans alike are morons.

My only thought... there's a big shake-up within SHIELD itself, Fury has been removed as head, Agent Hill has been disciplined and the interim leader has yet to be chosen by the world security council.

This fits within the parameters of the tv series, allows Coulson to be more involved in the politics and leadership roles of SHIELD. He's only an agent after all. Without high-level direction, SHIELD operates in smaller cells located within the US, not globally.
megabatfan
megabatfan - 5/17/2013, 8:14 AM
@nibs
He may not be in the movies (physically), but come on... The Avengers 2 will be set years after The Avengers. Heck IM3 is supposed to take place 1 year after the events of The Avengers. You really think that Cap, Iron Man, Bruce, Thor etc are gonna team up all these years later, and have no knowledge that Coulson is doing whatever will be going on in the TV series?
Thor is making his next appearance in TDW, he's gonna be busy dealing with whatever he'll be dealing with. So I can understand him being out of the loop.
Banner, probly in seclusion or whatever, so not really abreast of that. But Tony, Steve, Natasha & Clint who have more active ties with Shield... They must come to know something before Avengers 3 can take place. Unless the events happen mere months after. Which I doubt very much
mrHJK
mrHJK - 5/17/2013, 8:17 AM
I'm thinking IM3 & CA:TWS happen simultaneously. Might explain SHIELDs absence. Even more so, SHIELD mostly deals with the unusual. Mandarin was a military operation as Rhodey said (which is also why I assumed he isn't an Avenger; a soldier for the US military probably couldn't also be in a free agent or SHIELD agent superhero team). SPOILERS It wasn't until Tony discovered the Extremis soldiers were the bombs that things might have fallen under SHIELD jurisdiction.
megabatfan
megabatfan - 5/17/2013, 8:19 AM
@hiluxsurf... Only explanation I can think of on where Shield was during the events of IM3 is if they base The Winter Soldier's events as happening around the same time as IM3 (sort of like how the events of Thor & TIH took place at the same time of IM2). That way, their hands could probably have been too busy to deal with Toy and his issues.
The producers have already stated that CA:TWS will be the only Phase 2 movie with Shield influence.
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