Production on Disney+ and Marvel Studios’ Hawkeye is now in full swing, and Marvel Cinematic Universe fans are eagerly anticipating the further adventures of the Avengers’ resident archer. Of course, Clint Barton won’t be alone this time around, as he’ll be joined by a protégé – Kate Bishop, who will be played by Hailee Steinfeld. The idea of Steinfeld playing Bishop is exciting, and those recently leaked set photos only amp up the hype. The actress herself is also pumped to bring the young heroine to the MCU and has opened about why she’s “so excited” to portray her.
After playing coy regarding reports of her casting, Hailee Steinfeld has begun to open up about what it’s like to join the sprawling MCU as a hero. She couldn’t give too much away, given the secrecy that surrounds Marvel’s productions, but she did explain that’s she excited about the opportunity to work with the studio to develop this iteration of Kate Bishop:
I’m just so excited. As I’m in the process of developing her, I’m working with some incredible filmmakers that are helping me bring her to life. I can’t wait for people just to see how we are interpreting this character through the comics and in her own sort of ways.
Kate Bishop made her Marvel Comics debut in the pages of Young Avengers back in 2005. However, it wasn’t until she starred alongside Clint Barton in Matt Fraction and David Aja’s Hawkeye run in 2012 that she truly gained recognition from comic book readers. The Disney+ series actually appears to be heavily influenced by Fraction and Aja’s work, even down to the logo.
Based on her comments to ET, Hailee Steinfeld has already fallen in love with her character and made note of her wit and physical abilities. Steinfeld also noted that the latter has been particularly helpful for her as she’s endured quarantine for most of the past year:
She’s such a badass, there’s no denying that. She’s so smart and witty and quick and her physical ability to do so many things is through the roof. It’s really tested me, and it’s kept me going through quarantine, I will say. It’s given me a reason to stay with it. But I’m just very excited as I continue developing her to see sort of how we come up with it all.
Steinfeld’s Kate Bishop represents the beginning of a shift in the MCU that will see a number of young heroes like Ms. Marvel and Ironheart enter the fray. With this, many believe Bishop and these newer heroes could eventually form the Young Avengers.
We don’t know exactly how Kate Bishop will be utilized in the MCU moving forward, but one would imagine that she’ll be a major player moving forward. It’s going to be fun to see what Hailee Steinfeld brings to this aspiring archer.
Hawkeye is set to premiere on Disney+ in late 2021.
