Hawkeye on Disney Plus: Everything we know about the MCU show

As smaller-scale Marvel heroes (and villains) continue to get their moments in the limelight, the last Phase 1 Avenger is finally getting his own title with a Hawkeye show on Disney Plus.

And it’s a Christmas special! Well, sort of.

With four other MCU shows already available on the streaming service, Hawkeye is about to continue Disney’s ambitious streak of bringing its Marvel characters to the small screen as part of Phase 4, which already saw the release of Black Widow in theatres and on Disney Plus last month.

So, what will Hawkeye be about? Where does it fit in the MCU timeline? Who’s in it? And what are people saying about it? Read on for everything we know about Hawkeye on Disney Plus so far.

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What is the Hawkeye show all about?

Disney and Marvel have released a few bits of info, as well as a trailer, so we’re getting a clearer and clearer sense of what Hawkeye will be about.

The main plot of the show will see Clint Barton/Hawkeye working with and mentoring a young archer. Kate Bishop, who also goes by the moniker Hawkeye, will be Clint’s protégé, possibly eventually replacing him among the Avengers.

At the same time, Clint will be dealing with some of the fallout of his actions in Avengers: Endgame, playing judge, jury, and executioner to criminals around the world. Now that things are back to normal, his past appears to be catching up with him.

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The Hawkeye show will also follow Clint reconnecting with his wife and kids following the events of Avengers: Endgame, where he spent five years apart from them when they were wiped out by Thanos in “the Snap.” In the first trailer, we see Clint promising his daughter that he’ll be home for Christmas, once he’s dealt with the skeletons in his closet. In a second trailer, Clint’s wife, Laura, is disappointed that his latest mission is delaying his return home.

The holiday setting appears to be pretty central in the trailer, with “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” playing over the action. Blending action with a Christmas setting puts Hawkeye in the good company of movies like Die Hard, Lethal Weapon, The Long Kiss Goodnight, and fellow Marvel title Iron Man 3.

When and where can I watch Hawkeye?

Hawkeye will be available exclusively on Disney Plus when it premieres November 24.

As with WandaVision before it, Hawkeye will kick off with a multi-episode premiere, launching the first two parts of the season on November 24.

And continuing the trend set by Loki and What If…?, Hawkeye will bow on a Wednesday, with new episodes released weekly at 12am PST on Wednesdays thereafter.

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The first season of Hawkeye on Disney Plus will run for six episodes over four weeks.

Earlier MCU series on Disney Plus came out Fridays. After WandaVision and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Disney made the switch to hump day with Loki and What If…?.

Who’s involved in the Hawkeye show?

Joining longstanding Hawkeye actor Jeremy Renner will be Hailee Steinfeld (True Grit, Bumblebee) as, uhm, also Hawkeye. Steinfeld plays the Kate Bishop incarnation of Hawkeye.

Another familiar face will be Florence Pugh, reprising her Black Widow role as Yelena Belova, Black Widow’s adopted sister. And Laura will be played, once again, by Linda Cardellini, who previously played Clint’s wife in Avengers: Age of Ultron and Avengers: Endgame.

Bishop’s wealthy mother is played by Oscar-nominee Vera Fermiga. Other cast members include Fra Fee, Tony Dalton, Zahn McClarnon, and Brian d’Arcy James.

The new Hawkeye show will also serve as an introduction to Maya Lopez, known as Echo, who is set to spearhead her own show on Disney Plus at a later date. Newcomer Alaqua Cox will play Echo, a deaf, Native American hero in Marvel comics who can echo her opponents’ abilities and fighting styles.

Behind the camera, Rhys Thomas and duo Bert and Bertie are directing the eight episodes, with Mad Men’s Jonathan Igla writing and serving as showrunner.

Where we left off?

First introduced in 2011’s Thor, Clint Barton/Hawkeye is one of the oldest MCU characters. He has appeared in Thor, The Avengers, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Captain America: Civil War, and Avengers: Endgame.

Initially a member of S.H.I.E.L.D. and a founding member of the Avengers, Hawkeye has a long history with Natasha/Black Widow, the two working side-by-side for years before the other MCU heroes showed up.

In his last two appearances, Clint first went against the American government’s Sokovia Accords, winding up under house arrest following the events of Captain America: Civil War. Then, we saw him fight Thanos in Avengers: Endgame. Having lost his family in the Snap, Clint went AWOL, murdering criminals around the world until he had the chance to bring back his wife and kids.

While he tried to sacrifice himself instead of Natasha, she ultimately beat him to it, so we’ll be catching up with a Clint who’s likely wracked with surVivor’s guilt in Hawkeye.

Who is Kate Bishop?

Bringing Kate Bishop into the fold will likely help the show build out Clint’s character beyond being old friends with Nat and a quintessential family man. It could also mean Clint is on his way out and will be replaced by Kate in later MCU titles.

Kate is the daughter of a wealthy family in the comics. After a run-in with the Avengers, she becomes a young counterpart to Hawkeye, mastering archery and other forms of combat. In later comics, the two Hawkeyes work side-by side as equals.

Her inclusion in a Hawkeye show on Disney Plus will likely offer an origin story of sorts, as she will be a protégé to the existing Hawkeye.

Kate Bishop is just one of several members of Marvel Comics’ Young Avengers who have already been introduced to the MCU. Ant-Man’s daughter Cassie, Wanda and Vision’s sons Tommy and Billy, and kid Loki have all been on the team at some point in the comics. Another Young Avenger from the comics, Ms. Marvel, is also set to get her own show before appearing in a sequel to Captain Marvel.

We don’t know whether Disney and Marvel will eventually try a Young Avengers title, but they’re certainly putting the pieces in place if they do.

What to expect from Hawkeye on Disney Plus

Disney and Marvel have kept details of the Hawkeye series pretty quiet. Even assuming the series takes place after the events of Avengers: Endgame could turn out to be wrong. Captain America: The First Avenger, Captain Marvel, and Black Widow have all taken place years or even decades earlier than their place in the MCU’s chronological order.

But we actually do know a lot about Hawkeye. And we can piece together some solid theories beyond that. Below are some things to expect from Hawkeye on Disney Plus:

• Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige has suggested the show will explore part of Barton’s time as Ronin, his mantle while he was off hunting bad guys in Avengers: Endgame. It’s not clear how much of the show might be a prequel to the events of Endgame or include flashbacks or other narrative devices from the perspective of the MCU’s “present day,” but most of the trailer looks to be happening post-Endgame.
• Set photos and the trailer show Jeremy Renner wearing what appears to be a hearing aid. In Marvel comics, Hawkeye loses his hearing, so it appears that the series will present a version of Hawkeye as a deaf hero. This tracks with the inclusion of Echo, another canonically deaf hero.
• Kate Bishop walks a dog that looks a lot like Clint’s own dog in the comics, known as Lucky the Pizza Dog.
• Images released by Disney mirror the aesthetics of Matt Fraction and David Aja’s 2012–2015 Hawkeye comic run. That version of Hawkeye included Kate Bishop and Clint’s Deafness. It also included the “Tracksuit Mafia,” who were the original owners of Lucky the Pizza Dog.
• The trailer confirms that the Tracksuit Mafia will appear, likely as antagonists, in keeping with the comics.
• We see in the trailer that a Broadway musical has been produced about Captain America. Hopefully Rogers: The Musical has a better run than the real-life Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark.
• Florence Pugh’s inclusion could hint at a larger role for the Little Women and Midsommar actress within the MCU. Clint and Natasha were very close, and Pugh’s Yelena has been rumored to be the next incarnation of the Black Widow persona.
• A Black Widow post-credit scene also reveals that Yelena has been working with Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, who also appeared in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Pugh’s involvement could mean Julia Louis-Dreyfus will appear as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine in Hawkeye as well.
• Since Yelena wasn’t present for Natasha’s death, we’ll likely see some kind of confrontation between her and Clint. As the last person to see Nat alive, Clint may at least have answers she needs.
• Marvel has revealed that Fra Fee plays a character named Kazi. This could be short for Kazimierz Kazimierczak, who, in the comics, is a mercenary villain known as Clown.
• Tommy Dalton is playing Jack Duquesne, likely a play on Jacques Duquesne. Duquesne is known as Swordsman in the comics. He has sometimes been a friend and sometimes a foe to Barton, and he was an early mentor to Hawkeye.

That’s everything we know (and a few things we don’t) about the Hawkeye show on Disney Plus. You can watch for yourself in November.