The Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. panel at San Diego Comic-Con featured hilarious anecdotes, and some very big news. Here’s what we learned!
The cast is not coordinated
Early in the panel, Marvel Head of Television Jeph Loeb shared a blooper reel from the past season of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.. Interspersed with practical jokes (Elizabeth Henstridge sneezed after warning Luke Mitchell’s character that just such an event might kill him) and the requisite line-flubbing, the reel also demonstrated that the cast is not as suave as they appear on television. Multiple fight scenes were snagged in mid-badass as the actors gasped and apologized to their opposing stunt performers… and let’s just say there was a long spate of on-set “dancing” that must be seen to be believed.
How did FitzSimmons begin?
After waving away Clark Gregg’s eager requests to “Do the thing,” Loeb introduced a never-before-seen clip of Henstridge and Iain deCaestecker’s audition scene — the clip which essentially birthed the FitzSimmons relationship. In their first time acting together, Henstridge and DeCaestecker hunched in office chairs and contemplated Fitz and Simmons’ impending doom. The pair evolved through fear, to their familiar bickering (“I’m a highly evolved primate, capable of making my own decisions!” Fitz cries) to their impeccably coordinated scientific jabber. DeCaestecker and Henstridge laughed uncomfortably from the stage, but the Ballroom 20 crowd couldn’t have been happier.
The scene, incidentally, not only proved to executive producers Maurissa Tancharoen and Jed Whedon that Henstridge and DeCaestecker were right for the roles. Referencing familiar beats in the scene, Tancharoen cited the actors’ skill as the inspiration for Fitz and Simmons’ emotional scene in the Bus containment pod.
When Chloe met Brett
Loeb also shared a clip which further emphasized how much Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has evolved since season 1 — and brought back fond memories of shipping days past. The clip featured Chloe Bennet and Brett Dalton’s first scene together, shot before Bennet was even officially cast. Having just met, Bennet and Dalton launched into a scene of the sarcastic Skye and stalwart Ward preparing to go undercover as a married couple. Frustrated with Ward’s insistence on detail, Skye brings the “marriage” to a more realistic plane by pointing out that two such young people are probably miserable together. (“The wedding was tiny, and it was lame!” she says.)
It was quite a blast from the past to see Bennet inhabiting Skye’s uninhibited snark, and a great reminder of the chemistry between Dalton and Bennet. Executive producer Jeff Bell noted that this year is the cast’s first without Dalton on the panel, and called for a round of applause for the absent actor.
Henry Simmons is an actual teddy bear
While recounting favorite scenes from their time on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Henry Simmons pointed to the intense emotion of the Spy’s Goodbye — S.H.I.E.L.D.’s silent farewell to Bobbi and Hunter. Echoing the feelings of many fans, Simmons said that there was no need for him to act in that scene; his feelings of loss were entirely genuine. “It was one of the most emotional scenes of my whole career,” he admitted.
Simmons recalled a different kind of emotion later in the panel, while telling over his most difficult scene to film — a shot that had him dangling from a rope in the midseason finale of season 2. The actor admitted that he was terrified and kept resisting instruction to crawl higher, until his stunt double walked up to him and said, “I can touch you!”
We may not have seen the last of Bobbi and Hunter
The Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season 4 panel was also feeling the loss of Bobbi and Hunter, after ABC declined to pick up their spinoff pilot Most Wanted. When a fan from the audience asked if the dynamic duo would return, Jeph Loeb demurred. “It’s classified,” he said.
“It’s definitely classified,” Jed Whedon agreed. “But keep watching.”
Daisy may not stay single… and where do babies come from?
Another audience question asked whether or not fans should brace themselves for a new love interest for Daisy.
“It won’t be right away, but be prepared,” Whedon allowed, to which Chloe Bennet cracked, “She needs to get laid!” As the presence of children in the audience dawned on her, the actress scrambled backward. “She needs to lay down,” Bennet laughed. “She needs to take a nap.”
Ghost Rider is coming!
The panel concluded with an audience request to see footage from season 4. That, Loeb said, was impossible, as the cast had only resumed filming on Thursday. Clark Gregg lept to his cue, demanding that Loeb “Do the thing!” Loeb did the thing, revealing a brief but dynamic sizzle reel featuring the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. logo dissolving into flames before a leering skull.
“Vengance comes this Fall,” the chyron read — and the audience erupted.
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season 4 premieres on Sept. 20 at 10 p.m. EST on ABC.