Hawkeye head writer Jonathan Igla, it turns out, is uniquely suited to the role of telling the story of the least powerful, but perhaps most relatable Avenger. For one thing, the experienced writer/producer’s credits include the well-regarded series Mad Men, Bridgerton, Pitch, and Sorry for Your Loss. For another, he knows his way around a bow and arrow. And also, as he tells Consequence, “I read everything in the comic book world, I really grew up with Marvel Comics and I love all of the biggest and smallest stuff as a writer.”
One of those comics, the 2012 Hawkeye series written by Matt Fraction with art by David Aja, was a very clear inspiration point for the six-episode series which just debuted on Disney+. The latest TV adventure spotlighting a specific MCU player, Hawkeye features Jeremy Renner as the former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent who first appeared in Thor, then became an integral part of the Avengers framework.
Following the events of Avengers: Endgame, the new show features Clint Barton just wanting to celebrate a nice normal Christmas with his family — despite the complication of Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld), a young woman who slams into his life and despite her own special set of skills, could definitely use some help dealing with the New York criminal underworld that she’s just pissed off.
In this phone interview, transcribed and edited for clarity, Igla talks about his initial approach to taking on the project, why details like Clint’s hearing loss felt important to him to include, and why Christmas plays such a big role in the series. Igla also discusses the origins of Rogers: The Musical, the recently confirmed spinoff Echo, featuring Hawkeye star Alaqua Cox as Maya Lopez, and what telling a story about superheroes has in common with writing about ad execs and baseball players.
