Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D

## Production

### Executive Producers

Joss Whedon, Jed Whedon, Maurissa Tancharoen, Stan Lee, Alan Fine, Joe Quesada, Jeffrey Bell, Jeph Loeb, Paul Zbyszewski, Jim Chory, Brent Fletcher

### Production Company

ABC Studios, Marvel Television, Mutant Enemy Productions

## Series Chronology

### Next

Agent Carter

Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D, or simply Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., is an American television series created for ABC by Joss Whedon, Jed Whedon, and Maurissa Tancharoen, based on the Marvel Comics organization S.H.I.E.L.D. (Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division), a peacekeeping and spy agency in a world of superheroes. It is set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and acknowledges the continuity of the franchise's films and other television series. The series is produced by ABC Studios, Marvel Television, and Mutant Enemy Productions, with Jed Whedon, Tancharoen, and Jeffrey Bell serving as showrunners.

## Plot

The missions of the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division.

## Cast and Characters

* Clark Gregg as Phil Coulson and Sarge:
Coulson is an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., and later becomes the organization's director.[14] In April 2013, Gregg agreed to join the series after hearing creator Joss Whedon's explanation for Coulson's resurrection, following the character's death in *The Avengers*, which he called "fascinating" and "true to the world of the comics".[15] Gregg approached Coulson's promotion to director as getting his dream job, which at the same time forced the character to adopt a more level-headed attitude, like that of Nick Fury.[16] After being possessed by the Spirit of Vengeance in the fourth season finale, the Kree blood that resurrected Coulson is burned away and he ultimately dies following the fifth season finale.[10] Gregg plays a new character, Sarge, in season six.[13]
* Ming-Na Wen as Melinda May:
Joss Whedon had the character, a S.H.I.E.L.D. ace pilot and weapons expert, nicknamed "the Cavalry"[17] and originally listed with the name Agent Althea Rice on casting sheets,[18] "rolling around in his head" for a long time. Wen was given some backstory for the character to prepare, but was not told how she gained her reputation;[19] with May's past revealed in "Melinda", Wen called it "devastating ... To have learned what she had to do, for the good of the many ... I can understand why it would traumatize her so much and cause her to retreat."[20] Wen called May "unconventionally maternal",[21] and said that it is her relationship with Coulson that makes her stay at S.H.I.E.L.D. despite her past.[22]
* Brett Dalton as Grant Ward and Hive:
Ward is a Hydra agent who poses as a S.H.I.E.L.D. black ops specialist.[23][24] From the conception of the series it was decided that he would be a traitor, with Jed Whedon explaining that they wanted to have "infiltration based on betrayal" on a small scale to represent the same thing happening on a massive scale, and to make the Hydra revelation more personal for the characters.[25][26] Dalton felt that Ward was always more loyal to his Hydra superior John Garrett than Hydra itself, and would become more of a wildcard after Garrett's death though still an antagonist to S.H.I.E.L.D.[27][28] Ward is killed by Coulson in season three,[29] and his body is possessed by an ancient Inhuman, Hive.[6] Dalton returned to the series in its fourth season to portray Ward in the virtual reality Framework, where he is Johnson's boyfriend.[30] Austin Lyon portrays a young Ward.[31]
* Chloe Bennet as Daisy "Skye" Johnson / Quake:
An Inhuman S.H.I.E.L.D. agent with the ability to create earthquakes.[3][18] The character of Skye was always intended to become the MCU version of Johnson, and the revealing of this has consequences for the character's relationships to the other S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, especially with Coulson.[32] Bennet felt that the character was someone who would wear her heart on her sleeve while having some control over her emotions.[33] Wen noted that the character evolves from being "anti-establishment into suddenly being someone who wants to create an establishment that would help" the Inhumans.[21] In the third season she no longer goes by "Skye" and gains the public name "Quake".[34][35]
* Iain De Caestecker as Leo Fitz:
An agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. who specializes in engineering, especially weapons technology.[18][36] De Caestecker described the character as "quite passionate about what he does" but not emotionally intelligent.[37] Fitz has a close relationship with Simmons, with De Caestecker saying they "just kind of fit each other in a very weird way."[38] The character receives brain injuries at the end of the first season, with the writers researching brain trauma with doctors and experts before approaching it in the series. De Caestecker did his own research as well, feeling it is "something that should never be trivialized. It's a real and serious thing ... we just have to constantly be respectful towards it."[39]
* Elizabeth Henstridge as Jemma Simmons:
A S.H.I.E.L.D. biochemist who specializes in life sciences (both human and alien).[18][36] Henstridge described her character as "intelligent and focused and curious...she's got a wonderful relationship with Fitz. They kind of bounce off each other."[40] As Fitz and Simmons begin to spend time apart during the series, Henstridge noted that it "brings a whole new dynamic just to them as characters" since they have been near inseparable since first meeting.[41] On the harsher side of Simmons seen in later seasons, Henstridge noted that the character has "always been very mathematical in a way".[36] Simmons is "profoundly" changed after being trapped on the planet Maveth for six months.[42]
* Nick Blood as Lance Hunter:
A mercenary before agreeing to join S.H.I.E.L.D.[43] Blood described Hunter as someone who "doesn't bow down to the etiquette of the S.H.I.E.L.D. hierarchy."[44] He later elaborated that the character feels very independent, so would probably not want to admit no longer feeling like an outsider. Also, "he doesn't have too much respect for authority and titles...if Coulson does something he respects, that's all good. If he doesn't, he's going to say something." On Hunter's on-again, off-again relationship with Bobbi Morse, Blood said, "there is a lot of truth in it of those relationships you have where it's kind of, 'can't live with each other, can't kill each other'".[45]
* Adrianne Palicki as Bobbi Morse:
Hunter's ex-wife and an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. who spent time undercover within Hydra.[46] Palicki was approached by the showrunners specifically for the part during season two. Palicki already had martial arts and gun training, but had to learn to use the character's signature arnis sticks; she noted similarities between Morse's fighting style and that of Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow from the MCU films.[47] Showrunner Jeffrey Bell said the character is more loyal to an idea than anything else, so what may seem in the short term as a betrayal by her is usually for what she sees as the greater good.[48]
* Henry Simmons as Alphonso "Mack" MacKenzie:
A S.H.I.E.L.D. mechanic with a distrust of the alien and superhuman.[49] Simmons said the character is more worried about contributing in his own way and getting his job done away from the field.[50] Mack does not like violence, but does "what he has to do."[51] Mack reveals in the third season that he relies on his "faith", implying that he is a Christian.[52] Dee Hogan of *The Mary Sue* described this as "a refreshingly positive portrayal of people of faith, as Mack demonstrates the quiet confidence and love rather than the aggression and bigotry that's so often associated with it."[53] Mack becomes the new director of S.H.I.E.L.D. in season six.[54]
* Luke Mitchell as Lincoln Campbell:
An Inhuman with the ability to manipulate electrical charges.[55] The character was introduced because the series already featured "a guy with no eyes" and "a woman who now is covered in thorns" but, like the X-Men, there are also Inhumans who are "just attractive people with powers", and so Campbell represents them in the series.[56] Campbell dies in the third season finale,[35] making him the "Fallen Agent" that the series had been teasing for the entire second half of that season.[57][58] The decision was made because the producers did not want "a body count show, but it is a real world with real stakes."[59]
* John Hannah as Holden Radcliffe:
A transhumanist who believes in the improvement of humanity through enhancement.[60][61] Radcliffe initially worked with Hive before joining S.H.I.E.L.D. where he begins work on transferring his artificial intelligence AIDA to a Life Model Decoy, an old S.H.I.E.L.D. project.[62] He is ultimately killed by AIDA.
* Natalia Cordova-Buckley as Elena "Yo-Yo" Rodriguez:
A Colombian Inhuman who can move at a super speed for a beat of her heart, before returning to the point she started moving from. She reluctantly joins S.H.I.E.L.D. and becomes a part of the Secret Warriors, eventually growing close to Mack who gives her the nickname "Yo-Yo".[63][64] When first portraying the character, Cordova-Buckley smiled whenever Rodriguez was about to use her abilities, to show an adrenaline rush and the feeling of having such power. After positive fan responses to this, the actress morphed this trait into a more mischievous personality for the character.[65]
* Jeff Ward as Deke Shaw:
A "roguish scavenger" on the Lighthouse space station in the year 2091,[66] who returns to the present with the S.H.I.E.L.D. team and learns he is the grandson of Fitz and Simmons.[67]

## Episodes

Main article: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D (Episode Guide)

## Seasons

* Season 1 (2013-2014)
* Season 2 (2014-2015)
* Season 3 (2015-2016)
* Season 4 (2016-2107)
* Season 5 (2017-2018)
* Season 6 (2019)
* Season 7 (2020)