Hawkeye took place over Christmas and proved an effective debut for Hailee Steinfeld's Kate Bishop. The series also showcased Jeremy Renner as Clint Barton; the actor had been taking on supporting roles in the MCU since 2011, but soon made it clear that Hawkeye was deserving of the spotlight.
The actor recently revealed that when Marvel Studios approached him about season 2, he was offered only half of what he was paid for that first batch of episodes.
Renner understandably declined to reprise the role in that instance, and we've since heard that a new Hawkeye series will likely revolve around Kate. Previously, it was reported that season 2 would be set in one location similar to The Raid, pitting the Hawkeyes against Clint's brother, Barney Barton/Trickshot.
According to both The InSneider's Jeff Sneider and Puck's Matt Belloni, Disney and Marvel Studios deliberately made Renner a low-ball offer for Hawkeye season 2. According to the former, they were aware that he'd reject being paid half as much money, giving them a reason not to "have to make a second season of the show."
In his piece, Belloni added, "Nobody tell Renner the show attracted middling viewership and costs would have come down across the board for a Season 2—that is, if execs weren’t lowballing him in the first place so they could pin the cancellation on him, not them."
While it does sound like they're theorising to some extent, if Renner had something in his contract that guaranteed a second season, then that could explain why the studio settled on this tactic. It's now unclear what the future holds in store for Hawkeye, as neither Renner nor Steinfeld were announced as being part of the Avengers: Doomsday cast.
Here's a reminder of what Renner said about his Hawkeye season 2 discussions with Marvel:
"They asked me to do Season 2, and they offered me half the money. I’m like, ‘Well, it’s going to take me twice the amount of work for half the amount of money, and eight months of my time, essentially, to do it for half the amount. I’m like, ‘I’m sorry? Why? Did you think I’m only half the Jeremy because I got ran over? Maybe that’s why you want to pay me half of what I made on the first season.'"
"This is not Marvel, mind you. This is like, just Disney, not even really Disney. It’s just the penny pinchers, the accountants. I told them to go fly a kite. I mean, just at the insult offer. So we didn’t see eye to eye on it. Sadly, I still love the character. I’d still love to do it, but I had to defend myself. I didn’t ask for any more money, mind you. Just pay me what I made the first season. So it’s all disheartening that that didn’t happen, but that’s fine. I’m happy to let that go, because my body’s probably thanking me, time and time again, that I’m not doing it right now. But we’ll see."
Marvel Studios is believed to be moving away from bringing movie characters to streaming, instead deciding to create more distance between its film and TV offerings to avoid making the MCU feel like "homework."
That might explain why Daredevil: Born Again felt largely standalone. In comparison, WandaVision was essential viewing to understand Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, with The Falcon and The Winter Soldier a must-watch prequel to get the most out of Captain America: Brave New World.
Kevin Feige is spearheading some big changes at Marvel Studios, but here's hoping Renner and Steinfeld both get to suit up soon.
Hawkeye season 1 is currently streaming on Disney+.