Agents of SHIELD Season 6 Cast Photo Clues, Explained

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s latest photo may hold the key to understanding Season 6.

According to Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Transmedia Producer Geoffrey Colo, the photo is rife with symbolic meaning. "To answer your question, this is not from a particular episode; it's a thematic representation," he teased on Twitter. "Don't forget the Easter eggs. Some you'll recognize, others won't hold any significance until you've seen the particular episode."

The image, which recreates Leonardo da Vinci's famous The Last Supper painting with the Season 6 cast, can be seen in full below:

The team's new director, Alphonso "Mack" Mackenzie, is positioned in the center like Christ and gazes straight at the viewer. The rest of the team assembles around him, reflecting the poses of Jesus' disciples. Elena "Yo-Yo" Rodriguez's pose may be the most noteworthy here. Unlike the rest of the team, she faces Mack directly, with her arm resting on the table. This, of course, echoes Judas' pose in The Last Supper. Seeing as Mack and Yo-Yo are romantically involved, it's surprising to see Yo-Yo in the role of the Betrayer; after all, Judas sold out Jesus to the chief priests' soldiers by identifying him with a kiss. This doesn't bode well for Mack or Yo-Yo.

On the other hand, Daisy is posed like John, often refereed to as "disciple whom Jesus loved." John was Jesus' youngest disciple and outlived all his fellow apostles. Though no text confirms him as such, he is believed to be the author of the Gospel of John, as well as a handful of other New Testament books. If anyone is to make it through Season 6 unharmed, then, Daisy will likely be it so that she can go on to tell the agents' story.

Next up, Fitz falls in line with Matthew. Though Matthew faces away from Jesus in the painting, Fitz gestures like the apostle, pointing to something on the table. Like John, Matthew wrote one of the Gospels, which may also mark Fitz as "safe" in the events to come. Unlike John, though, Matthew had a career prior to his discipleship: he was a tax collector, a role often the subject of scorn in Jesus' time. As such, Matthew was an outsider and a sinner -- much like Fitz, whose time in the Framework corrupted him and caused him to perform cruel acts over the course of Season 5, which may put him on the outs with his team in Season 6. Further, Fitz is apart from his friends when the series picks up; the team will even undergo a mission to rescue him from cryosleep in deep space.

Simmons and Fitz's grandson Deke, on the other hand, leans over the table like Bartholomew. Bartholomew doesn't have any notable qualities that would reflect Deke's character, though he is known for miracles related to the weight of objects; this could be a sly nod to his Gravity Puck, which he used in Season 5 to manipulate gravity. Additionally, Bartholomew is always mentioned in company with Philip, another disciple. Seeing as Deke is now stuck in the past with Phil Coulson's team, this could be a wink at his new status quo. This could also indicate how he gets along with Coulson's mysterious doppelganger.

NEXT PAGE: It's Poker Night -- in Space!

Simmons and May are posed after some of the more obscure disciples. Simmons fill the role of James the Less, who watches the events from the end of the table without gesture. At the opposite end of the table, May stands at rest like Simon. However, not much is known about these apostles outside of the fact that they are named disciples of Jesus. As such, their postures may not have much bearing on the characters' directions in Season 6.

Unlike the others, Coulson's doppelganger doesn't stand at the table. He drifts in the background, looking on. He comes closest to mirroring Philip. Of course, this could simply be in reference to the character's name; after all, Clark Gregg's new Season 6 character is a mirror image of the late Phil Coulson. The Biblical Phil is named only in passing in three of the four Gospels, with the fourth mentioning only minor details. Like Simmons and May, then, the position of Coulson's doppelganger might not mean much in the long run.

In addition to the casts' symbolic positions, the cast photo offers a few other clues. For instance, the table and the wall behind them are inscribed with strange symbols, which suggests they may not be on Earth (or, at least, their Earth). The Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. -- and, indeed, any Earthling who lives in the Marvel Cinematic Universe -- have known for some time that they are not alone in the universe. However, with few notable exceptions, MCU characters who grew up on Earth don't generally go off to explore the galaxy. That should change in Season 6 when the team goes searching for Fitz, who is adrift in deep space.

When the team goes to space, then, it seems they will come across an alien civilization -- or, more specifically, an alien casino. After all, the photo shows Deke surreptitiously pocketing some poker chips. The fact that the team is gathered around the table suggests they will participate, perhaps in an effort to blend in, though some look happier about it than others.

In front of the poker chips, a canister is tipped on its side, its contents spilling out onto the table. However, it is unclear what the contents are. Since it is included in the photo, this will likely become important to Season 6 down the line.

Additionally, Mack appears to be holding a small black cube. This may be the source of the Coulson hologram shown in the Season 6 trailer, as it appears at the 9-second mark. Likewise, Mack appears to be playing with it as he speaks to May at the 22-second mark. Given its prominence here, the cube may play an even more significant role than we realize.

Finally, a strange sword is affixed to the front the table. Swords can represent a handful of different meanings, like power, strength and courage. At the end of the day, though, they are used for one thing: battle. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 6 is sure to be packed with action, and the sword could symbolize the war to come.

Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is set to return to ABC in May with 13 new episodes. The series stars Ming-Na Wen, Chloe Bennet, Henry Simmons, Iain De Caestecker, Natalia Cordova-Buckley, Elizabeth Henstridge and Clark Gregg.

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What Agents of SHIELD's Last Supper Image May Tell Us About Season 6