Everybody loves Hayley Atwell's Peggy Carter; she’s spunky, sassy, and an all-around badass. However, a vocal fanbase for a character doesn’t always translate to strong ratings. The highly anticipated second season of Marvel’s Agent Carter has decidedly underperformed at ABC, and has many questioning whether or not the founding member of S.H.I.E.L.D will get a second season. Hayley Atwell herself seems privy to these rumors and has decided to chime in. Here's what she had to say:
I am hearing at this point that we don’t know anything and we won’t know until the Upfronts in May… We also know that because Peggy has been in other Marvel films and we know she lives a long life, this is something that can be revisited. This is something that I think has a cult following and I have every hope that we’ll see more of her in the future.
Speaking with IGN, Hayley Atwell was optimistic about her future as an agent. The good news? Agent Carter's second season has proven fundamental to setting up Marvel Phase 3 films and by all accounts higher-ups like the ABC midseason replacement drama. In her comments, Hayley Atwell doesn’t explicitly say that Peggy Carter’s face has been completely sewn up at this point. Many people had falsely assumed that Atwell signing on to the upcoming Conviction pilot meant Agent Carter might not return. It opens the door for her to take part in another show, but it doesn't necessarily close any doors on Agent Carter.
Then again, despite its status as a lynchpin in Marvel’s television universe, Agent Carter has undeniably struggled to maintain ratings during its second season on the air. When looking at the ratings, Agent Carter's future prognosis might not be quite so hot, thanks to the ratings. Last night's finale, for instance only did 2.37 million total viewers and a .7 rating—and yes, those numbers are series and season lows for the show. Even if it is the end, at least Agent Carter went out on a high note.
Of course, cancelling Agent Carter doesn’t mean that this would be the last we as an audience get to see of Peggy. As Hayley Atwell points out in her interview, we all know that Peggy goes on to live for quite some time – at least through the events of Captain America: The Winter Soldier – and as such she can pop up in just about any flashback material they would want to include.That’s ultimately the beauty of Peggy Carter: even if her solo adventure does not survive, Marvel Studios can still inject her into just about any story because they have developed an incredibly rich history for the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
We will keep you posted regarding the future of Marvel’s Agent Carter as any and all news becomes available to us. The Season 2 finale of the ABC series aired last night; let’s hope it wasn’t the series finale as well.
