At a recent Hawkeye press conference, Marvel Studios President/Marvel Chief Creative Officer Kevin Feige explained how the Marvel Cinematic Universe decides on its cameos.
During the press conference, which was attended by CBR, Feige explained that he cares more about the story than adding a random unnecessary cameo to a project. "Well, I mean, Marvel is the world outside your window, and in the Marvel comics, yes, Spidey could swing by at any moment, or the Fantastic Four could come flying down," he said.
"But, even in the comics, it's, 'What is the story you're telling?' That's really what has to always be the primary focus, which -- in this case -- very much is Clint and Kate and getting to know more about Clint and getting to meet and know about Kate," Feige continued. "Everything in this series is focused towards that."
The MCU is known for its potential to cross over characters, as seen in Avengers films and, even more specifically, in the final battle of Avengers: Endgame. Recently, actor William Hurt reprised his role as Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross in Black Widow. Along with that, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings saw a cameo from Doctor Strange's Wong (Benedict Wong) in an underground fight with the Abomination, who hadn't been seen in the MCU since The Incredible Hulk in 2008. Earlier this year, Doctor Strange was also rumored to cameo in the final episode of WandaVision, something that Feige later noted was meant to occur but was decided against to keep the focus on Wanda Maximoff.
There is a lot of potential for crossovers in Hawkeye, particularly with Spider-Man, Doctor Strange and the new Captain America residing in New York City. In terms of cameo rumors and speculation surrounding the MCU, Hawkeye is no exception. For example, it's been rumored that Vincent D'Onofrio might reprise his role as Wilson Fisk/Kingpin from Netflix's Daredevil series. While the actor has previously teased at his return, nothing has been confirmed by Marvel or Disney. It has also been confirmed that Florence Pugh's Yelena Belova from Black Widow will appear in the Disney+ series, though it's unclear what role she will play in the story.
Hawkeye sees the return of street-level Marvel, following Jeremy Renner's Clint Barton as he works together with young archer Kate Bishop, played by Hailee Steinfeld, in a festive New York City. Clint must face up to the enemies from his past as Ronin, who he became after he lost his family from Thanos' snap in Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. In order to get home for Christmas, he must face the consequences of his actions. Along with the return of Renner as Clint Barton and the introduction of Steinfeld as Kate Bishop, the series features new additions like Fra Fee, Vera Farmiga, Tony Dalton, Brian d'Arcy James and Alaqua Cox.
Hawkeye's first two episodes will be available to stream on Disney+ Nov. 24.