Everything We Already Know About Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Sixth Season

In typical Marvel fashion, we know very little about season six of Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. The recent trailer revealed a few hints about what to expect, but most of those weren’t very surprising.

Season five took us on a time travel journey to the literal end of the world, but of course, the S.H.I.E.L.D. team found a way to save everyone. Unfortunately, they lost Fitz and Coulson in the process. This has left viewers with a lot of questions heading into the new batch of episodes. With its premiere set for July, we’ve put together everything we know about season six of Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

8 CHRONICOMS RETURN

Season five introduced us to Chronicoms, an alien race who secretly live on Earth and chronicle its history. Enoch is the one who decided to send S.H.I.E.L.D. to the future to save the world. In the process of getting the team home, he sacrificed himself. Later, Noah, another chronicom, falls while assisting the team in the Lighthouse.

With the search on for Fitz in space, we imagine they will also meet Enoch, bringing him back into the story. There is also a cast listing for “Chronicom Hunter #1,” which means they will be centrally involved in at least one episode.

7 ANTHONY MICHAEL HALL GUEST STARS

Marvel TV has made a name for itself by having familiar faces show up in unexpected roles. For example, all the parents on Runaways, Alfre Woodard in Luke Cage and David Tennant in Jessica Jones. We recently learned that Anthony Michael Hall is set to guest star during season six. Obviously, we have no idea who he’ll play or how long he’ll appear, but the season will introduce a new villain.

The actor is most famous for his starring roles in John Hughes ‘80s teen movies. Though, he’s no stranger to sci-fi, having spent six years as the lead in USA’s The Dead Zone, as well as guest appearances on Z Nation, Psych and Riverdale.

6 DEKE WILL BE BACK

One of the most interesting new characters in season five was Deke Shaw, a hardened survivor from the future. He followed the team back to their time, and all our jaws hit the floor when we realized he was FitzSimmons’ grandson. Once the unwanted future was averted, he decided to go off an explore the world.

With actor Jeff Ward upped to series regular, it seems as though we’ll being seeing more of Deke and he will rejoin the team in some way. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. can be an extremely dark show at times, so it’s good to have a fun character like Deke break things up and offer comic relief.

5 IT WILL BE SHORTER

The season five finale had a very series finale feel to it. Coupled with the events taking place in Infinity War, fans wondered if we had reached the conclusion of the team’s adventures. It was a bit of a shock when a season six renewal came. The catch was that it would air in the summer and now feature 13 episodes.

This is actually a good thing, as less episodes means tighter storytelling and less hours of filler. In terms of story arcs, it has worked to some degree for Marvel’s Netflix series. Shorter seasons are also common among summer shows, as networks feel audiences have less free time to invest in TV.

4 SEASON 7 HAS ALREADY BEEN CONFIRMED

Fresh off the surprise that we were getting a season six, came the announcement that we were also getting a season seven. We have former ABC President Channing Dungey to thank for this one, since this was one of her last decisions before leaving.

Seeing as we know very little about season six, we know less than nothing about season seven. We can only guess there will be some sort of effect from Avengers: Endgame (a project we know even less about). Though nothing has been confirmed, early pickups for long-running series can be a precursor to an ending. It’s the network’s way of giving producers plenty of time to wrap everything up.

3 THE TEAM WILL SEARCH FOR FITZ IN SPACE

Fans had been waiting five seasons to see FitzSimmons get their happy ending, and it finally came when the star-crossed couple found each other again and got married. This being a comic book show meant their happiness was short lived, and Fitz was lost while trying to save people.

In an interview with ET Online, Clark Gregg revealed that half the team will be in space searching for the Fitz that is in cryosleep. Now that the destruction of Earth has been averted, he doesn’t need to go to the future. We don’t know for certain if Iain de Caestecker will return, but we have to hope that FitzSimmons will once again defy the odds.

2 MACK IS THE NEW DIRECTOR

Before he and May headed off to Tahiti, Coulson passed the reins to Mack. Ahead of the show’s premiere, it’s been confirmed that he is now the new Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. He’s obviously not ruthless like Nick Fury and won’t be the surrogate father that Coulson was, but he was the perfect choice to balance the responsibility with the team.

Mack’s portrayer Henry Simmons explained to TV Line how Mack handles being in charge. “Personally, I love the challenge of being the director of S.H.I.E.L.D., Mack has worked side-by-side with the people he now leads, and that works to his advantage.”

1 COULSON IS GONE

A big chunk of season five revolved around Coulson dealing with his impending demise. While the team desperately searched for a cure, Coulson came to terms with his mortality. When it was time to choose between Coulson and the world, there was no hesitation to save the world.

The season six trailer begins with the words “Phil Coulson is dead,” immediately ending all speculation. Then it ends with Clark Gregg as a mystery man who has no idea what S.H.I.E.L.D. is. Gregg told Marvel.com that he’s not playing Phil Coulson, this is a completely new character. Here’s the thing, it’s a comic book show, so we really can’t 100% buy that Coulson is really gone.