Linda Cardellini has a long and successful career appearing in pop culture mainstays, whether as Velma in the live-actionScooby-Doomovies or Lindsay inFreaks and Geeks. The actress added another feather to her cap after joining the MCU as Laura Barton, wife of Clint Barton akaHawkeye. During an interview with Collider, Cardellini revealed she would love for Laura to become a more prominent part of the franchise.
“I mean, you know, it was one of those things where I was sort of brought into the universe and it truly is its own universe. It’s its own entity with this fandom that is incredible and to be part of it is, I don’t know, it’s pretty fun. My daughter’s friends love it. It’s one of those kinds of things, you know? So it’s always fun. I mean, would I love to see aLaura Bartonmovie? Sure! But I don’t think that’s gonna happen. I think people are more interested in the superheroes.”
Ever since his debut, Hawkeye had been mocked by audiences for bringing a bow and arrow to a superhero gunfight. Instead of trying to make the character more superpowered, the MCU instead leaned even harder into Hawkeye’s portrayal as an ordinary many by giving him a wife and children inAvengers: Age of Ultron. In her brief appearance as his wife Laura,Linda Cardelliniwas successful in establishing herself as a grounding presence in Clint’s superhero life.
While it is true that the MCU’s primary attraction is the superpowered beings, and the adventures of Laura Barton: Regular Housewife would not garner much interest, the franchise is no stranger to taking regular civilians and giving them superpowers. In fact, a majority of theMarvel filmsinvolve an ordinary person like Peter Parker or Scott Lang stumbling across a series of fortuitous events that turn them into superheroes. So the door is not entirely shut on the Adventures of Laura Barton: Superhero House Wife.
On the other hand, Hawkeye’s entire arc is as an ordinary man in a world full of superpowered beings, and Cardellini’s character could well be a bigger part of that journey. The upcomingHawkeyespinoff onDisney+is set to introduce the MCU’s first female archer. While the character is generally understood to be Hawkeye’s daughter whom he was shown to be training inAvengers: Endgame, it could well turn out to be Cardellini as a different version of Kate Bishop aka the new Hawkeye from the comics.
However, Clint’s presence within the larger MCU might take a backseat for now. The character has retired on multiple occasions from the Avengers, and his focus currently seems to be spending time with his family on his farm. With the death of Natasha aka Black Widow, Clint has lost the person he was closest to within the MCU, and would be even less enthused to go adventuring with other heroes when there are several new superpowered beings available to shoulder the burden.
Meanwhile, Cardellini’s most recent movieCaponewith director Josh Trank and Tom Hardy is available for online streaming. She can also be seen in season 2 ofDead to Me, streaming on Netflix. This news originated atCollider.
