When Avengers: Age of Ultron is released next month, fans will see several well-known women from the Marvel universe, including Black Widow, Scarlet Witch, Maria Hill and Peggy Carter - as well as original character Dr. Helen Cho. It was recently speculated that Carol Danvers, a.k.a. Captain Marvel, might be another notable female hero that would grace us with her presence, but while that has since been proven false, the film apparently still has a mystery female character left to be revealed. Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige stated that while this appearance isn’t a "big deal," it’s someone who he believes is a "good character." Well, Kevin, you have us intrigued.
The possible identities for this mystery character are numerous, from someone we’ve already met, to a character from the comics making their MCU debut. With that in mind, we’ve gone ahead and put together our picks of characters both established and waiting for their live-action debut that could fit Feige’s criteria for a minor appearance in the Joss Whedon-directed sequel.
Enchantress
Last week, an Avengers: Age of Ultron TV spot was released that show a brief shot of Thor walking what looked like Asgard. This wasn’t much of a surprise to those who saw the spoilers that came out a few months back, but it does beg the question if we’ll see any new, notable Asgardians in the film. Enchantress would certainly fit the bill, being one of Thor’s oldest enemies. Frequently teaming up with the gigantic Executioner, she is a talented sorceress who is notable for using her magic to seduce men. Having her briefly appear in Avengers: Age of Ultron could set her up as an antagonist in Thor: Ragnarok, although with a cataclysmic event coming that will see most, if not all, of the Asgardians killed off, it’s hard to imagine what kind of permanent damage she could do.
Jennifer Walters
Her civilian name might not ring a bell, but most of you are likely familiar with Jennifer by her superhero identity: She-Hulk. Jennifer is Bruce Banner’s cousin who gained powers similar to his when he gave her a blood transfusion. As She-Hulk, she also had super-strength (though not Hulk-levels) and retained her intellect while transformed. To clarify, if she showed up in Avengers: Age of Ultron, I imagine this would be a pre-superhero Jennifer Walters who doesn’t have the ability to turn into a green giant. Instead, she could simply be introduced as Bruce’s successful attorney cousin who could return for future movies. Since there are no plans to give Hulk another solo movie, this would be one of the best ways to expand on Bruce’s personal life as well as potentially set up one of Marvel’s most famous heroines for the MCU in the future.
Laura Barton
Granted, Laura Barton isn’t someone you would call well-known, but she would certainly help with fleshing out the backstory of a certain Avengers archer. In the Ultimate universe, Laura is Clint Barton, a.k.a. Hawkeye’s, wife. The MCU hasn’t delved into Hawkeye’s personal life, but Laura would certainly make a good addition to expand on his life outside of the spy world. Although they’re close, Hawkeye and Black Widow didn’t show any romantic interest in each other in The Avengers. Combined with no current plans to bring Mockingbird from Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. to the big screen, Laura would be the best option to be Jeremy Renner’s on-screen significant other. To back this up, Comicbook.com is reporting that Linda Cardellini is listed as playing Laura in the film - so even if she isn’t this mystery character that Feige is teasing, it’s looking likely that she’ll show up.
Sharon Carter
Despite getting her own poster, Captain America: The Winter Soldier didn’t feature much of Agent 13, a.k.a. Sharon Carter, but Marvel fans know that she winds up being a prominent part of Captain America’s life. When we last saw her, she had joined the CIA following S.H.I.E.L.D.’s collapse. We know that the Avengers will be dealing with Ultron personally, but he has an army so big that the U.S. and other nations will likely have to get involved in stopping the menace. If this happens, Emily VanCamp could briefly reprise her role in The Avengers: Age of Ultron, either to give Captain America intelligence for a mission or having to fight one of Ultron’s drones. A small appearance keeps her on the radar of both comic book fans and general viewers, as well as tease her returning for Captain America: Civil War. They could also finally confirm that she is related to Peggy Carter as well.
Hope Van Dyne
Marvel has been in the habit recently of introducing certain characters cameo in one movie before making their full debut in another - like having The Collector show up in Thor: The Dark World or Baron Strucker, Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch debut in Captain America: The Winter Soldier. What if Avengers: Age of Ultron has the same thing planned for Ant-Man, and we’ll be paid a visit by Evangeline Lilly’s character Hope Van Dyne? Although filming on Ant-Man started only a few weeks after Avengers: Age of Ultron finished shooting, there’s no reason Lilly couldn’t have briefly showed up during the main shoot or even during one of the reshoots for a small scene. While she wouldn’t be able to play a major role amidst everything going on, including her could serve as a way to foreshadow Ant-Man coming in July and connect both films together.
Skye
There have been several tie-ins between the Marvel movies and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., but so far none of the characters introduced on the series have made the leap to the big screen yet. It was previously announced that Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. will tie-in with Avengers: Age of Ultron, but what if this is extended to one of the cast members actually appearing in the movie? It hasn’t been announced if Clark Gregg will reprise his role as Phil Coulson for the movie, but it would be cool to see Skye as the show’s representative taking on Ultron drones. Currently in the series, Skye is learning about the earthquake abilities she obtained after breathing in the Terrigen Mist and awakening her Inhuman cells. In other words, this wouldn’t just be a standard agent shooting at robots - this would be a superpowered character unleashing powerful vibrations to take them out. That would be awesome!
Pepper Potts
Although there hasn’t been any mention of Pepper Potts appearing in Avengers: Age of Ultron, it’s possible that her inclusion may be one of the best kept secrets in a Marvel production. After all, that stunt was pulled off rather effectively for the first Avengers movie. Pepper is the most important person in Tony Stark’s life, so it’s hard to imagine her not having some sort of presence. She may be missing out on that party in Avengers Tower for the sequel, but there’s still a chance she could briefly appear chatting with Tony either in person or over the phone. It would be great to see Pepper show up at least briefly before, during, or after the Avengers’ conflict with Ultron, although whether she would make it out alive is a different question.
