When Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. launched on ABC, it was meant to be part of the MCU. After a rocky start, The Avengers spin-off found its footing in the second half of season 1 and excelled when it tied into Captain America: The Winter Soldier.
However, as time passed, the series became more and more far-removed from what's since been dubbed the Sacred Timeline. In recent years, we've learned that Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige didn't want any of those Marvel Television shows to happen; they were former Marvel Entertainment Chairman Ike Perlmutter's doing.
So, when the opportunity presented itself, Feige talked Disney CEO Bob Iger into allowing Marvel Studios to oversee everything by producing MCU TV shows for Disney+.
The canon status of both Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Agent Carter has been hotly debated for years. Many argue that they're clearly part of the MCU, an argument which carries a little more weight now the "Defenders Saga" appears to have been folded into the Sacred Timeline.
Talking to Screen Rant, Marvel Studios' Head of TV, Streaming, and Animation, Brad Winderbaum was asked about where things stand with both shows.
"Well, I'll tell you this, and put it to you like this. It's exciting for me to think about how to square those ABC shows with the canon," he confirmed. "That, to me, if you know me and the way my brain works, that is fun territory to imagine."
Reading between the lines, it appears they're not technically canon right now but Winderbaum is eager to fold them into the MCU when the opportunity to do so presents itself.
Last August, Winderbaum similarly addressed the place of these shows in the wider MCU:
"I think that S.H.I.E.L.D. is a really great show and there was a long time where some of the best reveals in that show were during the Winter Soldier era where Hydra emerges and you're like, 'Oh my gosh!' I remember that feeling, even knowing what was happening, just being a fan, [going] 'It really is connected!'"
"I think that there is, in a crazy way, like you said, it does feel like it fits into The Multiverse Saga in an incredible way. I want to go down this road with you, you know I do, but we're just gonna take a deep breath for a second. Just know that I love that cast, I love Clark Gregg and I love that show."
While we wouldn't necessarily bank on a revival for either show, Hayley Atwell will reportedly return as Peggy Carter in Avengers: Doomsday. If the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. are going to return alongside Coulson, then surely the Multiverse Saga is the place to do it.
As always, let us know your thoughts on Winderbaum's comments in the usual place.