Agent Carter (TV Series)
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''Marvel's Agent Carter'', or simply ''Agent Carter'', is an American television series created by
Christopher Markus & Stephen McFeely Christopher Markus (born January 2, 1970) and Stephen McFeely (born February 24, 1970) are American screenwriters and producers. McFeely and Markus were the second and the third most successful screenwriters of all time in terms of U.S. box offi ...
for
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...
, based on the
Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...
character
Peggy Carter Margaret Elizabeth Carter is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She is usually depicted as a supporting character in books featuring Captain America. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirb ...
following her roles in the 2011 film '' Captain America: The First Avenger'' and the 2013
Marvel One-Shot Marvel One-Shots are a series of direct-to-video short films produced by Marvel Studios, set within or inspired by the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). Initially released from 2011 to 2014, they were included as special features on the MCU fi ...
short film of '' Agent Carter''. It is set in the
Marvel Cinematic Universe The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on a series of superhero films produced by Marvel Studios. The films are based on characters that appear in American comic books published by ...
(MCU) and shares continuity with the franchise's films and other television series. The series was produced by
ABC Studios ABC Signature is an American television Filmmaking#Production, production studio that is a subsidiary of Disney Television Studios, a division of Walt Disney Television, which is part of the List of assets owned by The Walt Disney Company#Disne ...
,
Marvel Television Marvel Television was an American television production company responsible for live-action and animated (through Marvel Animation) television shows and direct-to-DVD series based on characters from Marvel Comics. The division was based at affi ...
, and F&B Fazekas & Butters, with Tara Butters, Michele Fazekas, and Chris Dingess serving as
showrunners A showrunner (or colloquially a helmer) is the top-level executive producer of a television series production who has creative and management authority through combining the responsibilities of employer and, in comedy or dramas, typically also th ...
.
Hayley Atwell Hayley Elizabeth Atwell (born 5 April 1982) is a British and American actress. Born and raised in London, Atwell studied acting at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, and made her stage debut in a 2005 production of James Kerr's translation ...
reprises her role of
Peggy Carter Margaret Elizabeth Carter is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She is usually depicted as a supporting character in books featuring Captain America. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirb ...
from the film series and One-Shot, with
James D'Arcy James D'Arcy (born Simon Richard D'Arcy; 24 August 1975) is an English actor and film director. He is known for his portrayals of Howard Stark's butler, Edwin Jarvis, in the Marvel Cinematic Universe television series '' Agent Carter'' and the ...
,
Chad Michael Murray Chad Michael Murray (born August 24, 1981) is an American actor and writer. He is best known for playing Lucas Scott in The WB/ CW drama series '' One Tree Hill'' (2003–09, 2012), a recurring role as Tristin DuGray on The WB/ CW series ''Gilm ...
, and
Enver Gjokaj Enver Leif Gjokaj ( ; born February 12, 1980) is an American film and television actor. He is known for his roles as Victor in the science fiction television series ''Dollhouse'' and as Daniel Sousa in '' Agent Carter'', a role he later reprised ...
also starring; they are joined by
Shea Whigham Franklin Shea Whigham Jr. (born January 5, 1969) is an American actor best known for portraying Elias "Eli" Thompson in the drama series ''Boardwalk Empire''. He also appeared in the first season of ''True Detective'' and the third season of ' ...
for the first season. In the series, Carter must balance life as a secret agent with that of a single woman in 1940s America. Development on a series inspired by the short film had begun by September 2013, with Atwell's involvement confirmed in January 2014. That May, ABC ordered the show straight to series. ''Agent Carter'' introduces the origins of several characters and story lines from MCU films, while other characters from the films also appear. The first season, consisting of eight episodes, originally aired from January 6 to February 24, 2015, while the second season, consisting of 10 episodes, originally aired from January 19 to March 1, 2016. Both seasons aired during mid-season breaks of ''
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. ''Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.'' is an American television series created by Joss Whedon, Jed Whedon, and Maurissa Tancharoen for ABC, based on the Marvel Comics organization S.H.I.E.L.D. (Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement, an ...
'' Despite a positive critical response, viewership fell, and on May 12, 2016, ABC cancelled ''Agent Carter''.


Premise

The first season takes place in 1946, with
Peggy Carter Margaret Elizabeth Carter is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She is usually depicted as a supporting character in books featuring Captain America. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirb ...
having to balance the routine office work she does for the Strategic Scientific Reserve (SSR) in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
with secretly assisting
Howard Stark Howard Stark is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is usually depicted as a background character in stories featuring Iron Man and stories featuring Captain America. He is the founde ...
, who finds himself framed for supplying deadly weapons to enemies of the United States. Carter is assisted by Stark's butler,
Edwin Jarvis Edwin Jarvis is a supporting character in the Marvel Comics titles ''Iron Man'' and ''Avengers (comics), The Avengers''. He is the loyal household butler of the Stark family. Since the 1990s, the character has appeared heavily in media adaptations ...
, to find those responsible and dispose of the weapons. In the second season, Carter moves from New York City to
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
to deal with the threats of the new
Atomic Age The Atomic Age, also known as the Atomic Era, is the period of history following the detonation of the first nuclear weapon, The Gadget at the ''Trinity'' test in New Mexico, on July 16, 1945, during World War II. Although nuclear chain reaction ...
by the Secret Empire in the aftermath of
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, gaining new friends, a new home, and a potential new love interest.


Cast and characters

*
Hayley Atwell Hayley Elizabeth Atwell (born 5 April 1982) is a British and American actress. Born and raised in London, Atwell studied acting at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, and made her stage debut in a 2005 production of James Kerr's translation ...
as
Peggy Carter Margaret Elizabeth Carter is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She is usually depicted as a supporting character in books featuring Captain America. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirb ...
:
An SSR agent initially stuck doing administrative work. Butters said Carter's "superpower is the fact that other people underestimate her. And she often uses that to her advantage". On the influence that the apparent death of Steve Rogers has on Carter, Atwell explained that "he was the greatest person she ever knew—even before he took the serum and became Captain America. She knew his character and she saw a kindred spirit in him. So I think she's grieving the loss of him but she's also determined to make sure that his work wasn't in vain. That gives her a tremendous amount of determination to carry on despite the obstacles that she comes across." Gabriella Graves portrays a young Carter. *
James D'Arcy James D'Arcy (born Simon Richard D'Arcy; 24 August 1975) is an English actor and film director. He is known for his portrayals of Howard Stark's butler, Edwin Jarvis, in the Marvel Cinematic Universe television series '' Agent Carter'' and the ...
as
Edwin Jarvis Edwin Jarvis is a supporting character in the Marvel Comics titles ''Iron Man'' and ''Avengers (comics), The Avengers''. He is the loyal household butler of the Stark family. Since the 1990s, the character has appeared heavily in media adaptations ...
:
Howard Stark's butler and ally to Carter, who will eventually be a tutor to
Tony Stark Iron Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was co-created by writer and editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby. The charac ...
and inspire his
J.A.R.V.I.S. J.A.R.V.I.S. (Just A Rather Very Intelligent System) is a fictional character voiced by Paul Bettany in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) film franchise, based on the Marvel Comics characters Edwin Jarvis and H.O.M.E.R., respectively the house ...
artificial intelligence Artificial intelligence (AI) is intelligence—perceiving, synthesizing, and inferring information—demonstrated by machines, as opposed to intelligence displayed by animals and humans. Example tasks in which this is done include speech re ...
. Atwell referred to Carter's relationship with Jarvis as the series' "comic relief", and said "she needs someone who is in contact with Howard to help kind of run this mission andthey have this very witty banter back and forth". Fazekas explained that some of the character's persona "has come from the comics and some of it we've developed ourselves. Some of it is influenced by James D'Arcy himself and his strengths." D'Arcy was initially nervous about portraying Jarvis's comedic side, given his history of "predominantly play ngpsychopaths". He did not study
Paul Bettany Paul Bettany (born 27 May 1971) is an English actor. He is mostly known for his roles as J.A.R.V.I.S. and Vision in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, recently starring in the Disney+ miniseries '' WandaVision'' (2021), for which he was nominate ...
's performance as J.A.R.V.I.S. when approaching the character. *
Chad Michael Murray Chad Michael Murray (born August 24, 1981) is an American actor and writer. He is best known for playing Lucas Scott in The WB/ CW drama series '' One Tree Hill'' (2003–09, 2012), a recurring role as Tristin DuGray on The WB/ CW series ''Gilm ...
as
Jack Thompson Jack Thompson may refer to: Sports * Jack Thompson (footballer, born 1892) (1892–1969), English footballer who played for Sheffield United and Bristol City * Jack Thompson (1920s footballer), English footballer who played for Aston Villa and Brig ...
:
A war veteran and agent with the SSR, described as chauvinistic and "chest-puffing". Murray compared the character to
Indiana Jones ''Indiana Jones'' is an American media franchise based on the adventures of Dr. Henry Walton "Indiana" Jones, Jr., a fictional professor of archaeology, that began in 1981 with the film '' Raiders of the Lost Ark''. In 1984, a prequel, '' Th ...
, and stated that "he's working his way up to become the head of the SSR. His goal in life is to just be great at his job. So he has a large chip on his shoulder, which gives him an attitude." Murray also noted that, unlike his character on ''
One Tree Hill One Tree Hill may refer to: * "One Tree Hill" (song), a 1987 song by U2 referencing One Tree Hill, New Zealand volcanic peak * ''One Tree Hill'' (TV series), a 2003–2012 American drama series named for the U2 song ** ''One Tree Hill'' (soundtr ...
'', Thompson does not serve as the "moral compass", which meant that he would not be "confined to a box" and would instead be allowed to "really play things up and do what's unexpected". For the second season, Thompson is made chief of the East Coast SSR office. *
Enver Gjokaj Enver Leif Gjokaj ( ; born February 12, 1980) is an American film and television actor. He is known for his roles as Victor in the science fiction television series ''Dollhouse'' and as Daniel Sousa in '' Agent Carter'', a role he later reprised ...
as
Daniel Sousa Daniel Sousa may refer to: * Daniel Sousa (director) (born 1974), Portuguese short film director * Daniel Sousa (football manager) (born 1984), Portuguese football manager * Daniel Sousa (Marvel Cinematic Universe) Daniel Jordan Sousa is a fic ...
:
A war veteran who is an agent with the SSR and experiences prejudice due to his injured leg. "He accepts his injury, he accepts his compromised status in society ... Peggy says, 'Forget this. I'm Peggy Carter. I'm going to do something else.' I think that's the difference between the two of them." Considering a potentially romantic relationship between Sousa and Carter, Gjokaj said, "I think there's definitely a situation where...if she hadn't dated Captain America, he might ask her out for a drink. It's like if your new girlfriend dated Ryan Gosling. It's going to make you sweat a bit." For the second season, Sousa is made chief of the West Coast SSR office. *
Shea Whigham Franklin Shea Whigham Jr. (born January 5, 1969) is an American actor best known for portraying Elias "Eli" Thompson in the drama series ''Boardwalk Empire''. He also appeared in the first season of ''True Detective'' and the third season of ' ...
as
Roger Dooley Roger Dooley is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Shea Whigham appeared as Roger Dooley in the Marvel Cinematic Universe TV series '' Agent Carter'' in the first season. He was depicted as the ch ...
:
The SSR chief who oversees Agents Carter, Thompson, and Sousa until he dies to save his fellow SSR agents at the end of season one. Whigham believes that, unlike many of the other agents, Dooley does respect Carter, saying, "I think he likes her. I think he cares deeply. I'm not sure that he can always show that ... these are things that keep him up at night, as well as the other boys, when I send them out on missions." The character was always intended to die during the first season's penultimate episode to help build stakes for the series given that "everyone knows Peggy lives", so from the beginning, Whigham was only hired for the seven required episodes.


Episodes


Season 1 (2015)


Season 2 (2016)


Production


Development

A potential ''Agent Carter'' series was initially brought up in July 2013 by
Louis D'Esposito Marvel Studios, LLC (originally known as Marvel Films from 1993 to 1996) is an American film and television production company that is a subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, a division of the Walt Disney Company. Marvel Studios produces the Mar ...
, after a screening of his '' Agent Carter'' One-Shot at
San Diego Comic-Con San Diego Comic-Con International is a comic book convention and nonprofit multi-genre entertainment event held annually in San Diego, California since 1970. The name, as given on its website, is Comic-Con International: San Diego; but it is co ...
. By September, Marvel Television was developing a series inspired by the short film, featuring Peggy Carter, and was in search of a writer for the series. In January 2014,
ABC Entertainment The American Broadcasting Company (ABC) is an American commercial broadcast television network. It is the flagship property of the ABC Entertainment Group division of The Walt Disney Company. The network is headquartered in Burbank, Calif ...
Group president Paul Lee confirmed that the show was in development, and revealed that Tara Butters and Michele Fazekas would act as the series' showrunners. Chris Dingess also serves as a showrunner. In March 2014,
Christopher Markus & Stephen McFeely Christopher Markus (born January 2, 1970) and Stephen McFeely (born February 24, 1970) are American screenwriters and producers. McFeely and Markus were the second and the third most successful screenwriters of all time in terms of U.S. box offi ...
, writers of the ''Captain America'' films, stated that they envisioned the series, which had not yet been greenlit, as a
limited series Limited series may refer to: *Limited series, individual storylines within an anthology series *Limited series, a particular run of collectables, usually individually numbered *Limited series (comics), a comics series with a predetermined number of ...
of approximately 13 episodes. By April 2014, there were indications that the series would be ordered straight to series, bypassing a pilot order, and would air between the late 2014 and early 2015 portions of ''Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.'', if that series got a second season renewal. On May 8, 2014,
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...
officially ordered the series for eight episodes, with executive producers Butters, Fazekas, Markus, McFeely, Dingess,
Kevin Feige Kevin Feige ( ; born June 2, 1973) is an American film and television producer who has been the president of Marvel Studios and the primary producer of the Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise since 2007. The films he has produced have a combin ...
, Louis D'Esposito, Alan Fine,
Joe Quesada Joseph Quesada (; born January 12, 1962'' Comics Buyer's Guide'' #1650; February 2009; page 107) is an American comic book artist, writer, editor, and television producer. He became known in the 1990s for his work on various Valiant Comics books ...
,
Stan Lee Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber ; December 28, 1922 – November 12, 2018) was an American comic book writer, editor, publisher, and producer. He rose through the ranks of a family-run business called Timely Publications which ...
, and
Jeph Loeb Joseph "Jeph" Loeb III () is an American film and television writer, producer and comic book writer. Loeb was a producer/writer on the TV series ''Smallville'' and ''Lost'', writer for the films '' Commando'' and ''Teen Wolf'', and a writer and ...
. The series was renewed for a second season on May 7, 2015, of 10 episodes.


Writing

Markus and McFeely stated in March 2014 that the series would be set in 1946 initially, occurring in the middle of the timeline established in the One-Shot, and would focus on one case for Carter. Additional seasons would then advance a year and examine a new case. Despite working on '' Captain America: Civil War'' at the same time, Markus and McFeely remained involved with the series after writing the first script. When the showrunners joined the series, they went on a "mini-camp" with Markus and McFeely to develop the series from a pilot script written by the pair. They looked to several different influences outside of Marvel in developing the series, including ''
Raiders of the Lost Ark ''Raiders of the Lost Ark'' is a 1981 American action-adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Lawrence Kasdan, based on a story by George Lucas and Philip Kaufman. It stars Harrison Ford, Karen Allen, Paul Freeman, Ronal ...
'', ''
L.A. Confidential ''L.A. Confidential'' (1990) is a neo-noir novel by James Ellroy and the third of his L.A. Quartet series. It is dedicated to Mary Doherty Ellroy. The epigraph is "A glory that costs everything and means nothing"— Steve Erickson. Plot The s ...
'', and the works of author
James Ellroy Lee Earle "James" Ellroy (born March 4, 1948) is an American crime fiction writer and essayist. Ellroy has become known for a telegrammatic prose style in his most recent work, wherein he frequently omits connecting words and uses only short, ...
. Elaborating on deviating from the comics, Fazekas said, for example, "if we're using a minor character or a bad guy from an old comic book, we don't have to adhere to what that character was in that comic book from 1945. Because there are so many different iterations of a specific character, you can't be true to every single one." ABC asked the producers to not have the series follow a "Gadget of the Week or Bad Guy of the Week" model, and instead focus on telling the story of Carter balancing her personal and professional lives. Fazekas called this "such a nice change" from previous television experience, with the group feeling free to drop whole story ideas in favor of focusing on the series' central storyline. On the time periods the series could potentially explore following the first season given Carter's role in '' Captain America: The Winter Soldier'', Atwell said, "I think the great thing about the fact that I've already played her at the end of her life means that we know ... owwe have an opportunity, if the show does go into second and third and fourth and fifth
easons Eason Retail PLC, known as Easons or Eason, is an Irish retail company best known for selling books, stationery, cards, gifts, newspapers and magazines. Headquartered in Swords, County Dublin, it is the largest supplier of books, magazines and ne ...
we know that we can explore all of these aspects of her character because we know she lives such a long life and she's had a fulfilled life. I think what's going to start happening in Season 1 is seeds are going to be planted as to what happens in her personal life—and yet it's still open to the possibility of new men coming into her life, deepening relationships with the men that we discover in Season 1. Obviously, the era is 1946 but in the second, third, fourth, fifth season—if it goes onto that—we can explore different time periods. We can explore the late forties, the early fifties, the sixties, the seventies, the eighties, up until present day, so it's very exciting because of that." However, Butters clarified that future seasons would likely stay in the same time period, possibly changing location to a place like Hollywood or Europe, to remain in a pre-S.H.I.E.L.D. setting and avoid competing with ''Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.'' This was the case with the second season, which moved the series to 1947 Los Angeles.


Casting

Atwell, who portrayed Carter in '' Captain America: The First Avenger'', ''Captain America: The Winter Soldier'', and the ''Agent Carter'' short film, expressed interest in returning as the character in October 2013, before Lee confirmed her involvement in January 2014. That August,
Chad Michael Murray Chad Michael Murray (born August 24, 1981) is an American actor and writer. He is best known for playing Lucas Scott in The WB/ CW drama series '' One Tree Hill'' (2003–09, 2012), a recurring role as Tristin DuGray on The WB/ CW series ''Gilm ...
and
Enver Gjokaj Enver Leif Gjokaj ( ; born February 12, 1980) is an American film and television actor. He is known for his roles as Victor in the science fiction television series ''Dollhouse'' and as Daniel Sousa in '' Agent Carter'', a role he later reprised ...
were cast as SSR agents Jack Thompson and
Daniel Sousa Daniel Sousa may refer to: * Daniel Sousa (director) (born 1974), Portuguese short film director * Daniel Sousa (football manager) (born 1984), Portuguese football manager * Daniel Sousa (Marvel Cinematic Universe) Daniel Jordan Sousa is a fic ...
, respectively, while
James D'Arcy James D'Arcy (born Simon Richard D'Arcy; 24 August 1975) is an English actor and film director. He is known for his portrayals of Howard Stark's butler, Edwin Jarvis, in the Marvel Cinematic Universe television series '' Agent Carter'' and the ...
was cast the next month as Edwin Jarvis, the character who would eventually inspire the
artificial intelligence Artificial intelligence (AI) is intelligence—perceiving, synthesizing, and inferring information—demonstrated by machines, as opposed to intelligence displayed by animals and humans. Example tasks in which this is done include speech re ...
J.A.R.V.I.S. J.A.R.V.I.S. (Just A Rather Very Intelligent System) is a fictional character voiced by Paul Bettany in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) film franchise, based on the Marvel Comics characters Edwin Jarvis and H.O.M.E.R., respectively the house ...
from the MCU films.
Shea Whigham Franklin Shea Whigham Jr. (born January 5, 1969) is an American actor best known for portraying Elias "Eli" Thompson in the drama series ''Boardwalk Empire''. He also appeared in the first season of ''True Detective'' and the third season of ' ...
was also cast, as SSR chief
Roger Dooley Roger Dooley is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Shea Whigham appeared as Roger Dooley in the Marvel Cinematic Universe TV series '' Agent Carter'' in the first season. He was depicted as the ch ...
. Atwell, D'Arcy, Gjokaj, and Murray returned for the second season.


Design


Costumes

The costume designer for the series was Giovanna Ottobre-Melton, who felt comfortable with the series' period setting after spending months researching American styles in the 1940s for the 2013 television series ''
Mob City ''Mob City'' is an American neo-noir crime drama television series created by Frank Darabont for TNT. It is based on real-life accounts of the L.A.P.D. and gangsters in 1940s Los Angeles as chronicled in John Buntin's book ''L.A. Noir: The Strugg ...
''. She noted that "many comic books were all blended by the color, style, and fabrics" from 1940s New York. Due to the large amount of action in the series, fabrics "with the feel and texture of the 1940s" had to be sourced in large quantities, to allow for the creation of four, five, or more of each costume. Ottobre-Melton's process "for each episode, s toread the script first, and then search for historic photos that relate to what the episode is about. Afterwards I chose the fabrics, and then begin to design the outfits."


Props

When creating the gadgets for the series, the writers noted the need to combine the period setting with the influence of Howard Stark, who opens the door to "things that are fantastic for the time period". They worked closely with the props department to develop technology that appears "both retro and futuristic at the same time", with Fazekas explaining that the goal was to avoid a
science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...
look, so the fantastical aspects were reserved solely for function while the aesthetic was kept within the realms of that time period.


Filming

Filming for the series took place in Los Angeles, with the story's location shifting from New York City to Los Angeles with the second season to capitalize on this.
Gabriel Beristain Luis Gabriel Beristáin, is a Mexican cinematographer, producer, and television director known for his work on numerous well-known films including '' The Distinguished Gentleman'', '' The Spanish Prisoner'', ''Blade II'', and '' Street Kings'', ...
, cinematographer for the One-Shot and the first season of the series, used a combination of modern digital technology and traditional analog techniques to replicate the feel of classic films that are set in the 1940s, but to also have the convenience and consistency of modern technology, such as using the
Arri Alexa The Arri Alexa (stylised as ΛLEXΛ) is a digital motion picture camera system developed by Arri. First introduced in April 2010, the camera was Arri's first major transition into digital cinematography after previous efforts such as the Arr ...
digital camera, along with Leica Lenses and silk-stocking diffusion nets. Edward J. Pei took over as cinematographer for the second season. Stunt coordinator Casey O'Neill, who also worked on the One-Shot and ''Captain America: The Winter Soldier'', incorporated the specific fighting styles of the characters, such as the more "CIA-trained" fighting of Carter or the more acrobatic, " Black Widow"-inspired style of antagonist Dottie Underwood.


Visual effects

Sheena Duggal served as visual effect supervisor, returning in the same capacity from the ''Agent Carter'' One-Shot, with the visual effects for the series created by
Industrial Light & Magic Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) is an American motion picture visual effects company that was founded on May 26, 1975 by George Lucas. It is a division of the film production company Lucasfilm, which Lucas founded, and was created when he began pro ...
(ILM),
Base FX Base FX is a visual effects and animation company with production studios in Beijing, Kuala Lumpur, Wuxi and Xiamen, and an office in Los Angeles. The company was founded in 2006 and has completed more than 150 films. Base FX specializes in high-e ...
, and later DNeg TV. Duggal worked closest with ILM, who coordinated with Base and DNeg to ensure a "seamless workflow". The majority of the series' visual effects work focuses on set extensions to depict the period setting, as well as the more fantastical aspects such as Howard Stark's inventions, or Zero Matter and Jason Wilkes' intangibility in the second season.


Music

In June 2014,
Christopher Lennertz Christopher Joseph Lennertz (born January 2, 1972) is an American composer, songwriter, and conductor of film, television, and video game scores. His musical scores appeared in ''Alvin and the Chipmunks'', '' Hop'', '' Think Like a Man'', and '' ...
, who composed the music for the ''Agent Carter'' One-Shot, talked about potentially working on the series, saying, D'Esposito "told me last summer at Comic-Con that there was a possibility this was going to become a series. And he said that if he was going to be involved, he wanted me to be involved, too." In September 2014, Lennertz officially signed on to compose for the series. Lennertz combined all the different style elements of the show in the music, such as mixing jazz and period elements, with orchestra and electronic elements. Lennertz said, the music is "always done from a sense of being sort of in control and savvy and clever, rather than just being strong or just having a superpower or sort of being so much further along than anybody else physically. Part of it was just trying to make it that she's just smarter than everybody else. She's got such command over so many of these situations, and that was the most important thing was to give her that personality." A soundtrack album for the first season was released on
iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...
on December 11, 2015, and the single "Whatcha Gonna Do (It's Up to You)" from the second season was released on March 18, 2016.


Marvel Cinematic Universe tie-ins

Because Carter originated from the films, Fazekas said
Marvel Studios Marvel Studios, LLC (originally known as Marvel Films from 1993 to 1996) is an American film and television production company that is a subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, a division of the Walt Disney Company. Marvel Studios produces the Mar ...
co-presidents Feige and D'Esposito were very invested in the production of the series and called them "really collaborative and very generous with their world". Markus, talking about the series' place in the greater architecture of the MCU, later said, "you really only need to drop the tiniest bit of hint and its connected. You don't have to go, 'Howard Stark's wearing the same pants that Tony wears!' ... Everything is enhanced just by the knowledge that its all connected." Butters said, "We always want to feel like you see us as a piece of he MCU But because of our time period, we kind of are on our own a little bit." In July 2014, Fazekas explained the series' relationship with the One-Shot by saying, "The short really is the basis for the series.
arter Arter is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Harry Arter * Jared Maurice Arter * Kingsley Arter Taft * Philip and Uriah Arter, after whom Philip and Uriah Arter Farm is named * Robert Arter * Solomon Arter, after whom Solomon ...
s working at SSR, post-war...If you think of the short as sort of the end of the series, the series would be leading up to that moment where she gets assigned to S.H.I.E.L.D." Markus reiterated this in January 2015, but acknowledged that it would be harder to keep continuity with the short the longer they made the series. The first season introduces the origins of the Black Widow and Winter Soldier programs, which both appear in several MCU films, while the second season shows the discovery of the
Darkforce The Darkforce is a fictional concept appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Description Darkforce is a powerful, extra-dimensional energy that can be manipulated in slightly different ways by a handful of beings that are ...
(known as Zero Matter in the series), which previously appeared in ''Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.'' and has ties to the Marvel characters
Doctor Strange Doctor Stephen Strange is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Steve Ditko, the character first appeared in ''Strange Tales'' #110 (cover-dated July 1963). Doctor Strange serves as Sorce ...
and
Cloak A cloak is a type of loose garment worn over clothing, mostly but not always as outerwear for outdoor wear, serving the same purpose as an overcoat, protecting the wearer from the weather. It may form part of a uniform. Cloaks have been and a ...
.


Release


Broadcast

''Agent Carter'' aired on ABC in the United States, in
720p 720p (1280×720 px; also called HD ready, standard HD or just HD) is a progressive HDTV signal format with 720 horizontal lines/1280 columns and an aspect ratio (AR) of 16:9, normally known as widescreen HDTV (1.78:1). All major HDTV broadcast ...
high definition and 5.1 surround sound. It also aired on CTV in Canada, and TV2 in New Zealand. In October 2014,
Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...
, the channel that airs ''Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.'' in the United Kingdom, stated that they did not "have any current plans o air''Agent Carter''". In June 2015, FOX UK purchased the broadcast rights for the United Kingdom, with the series premiering on July 12, 2015. In February 2016, the series was announced to air on
7flix 7flix is an Australian free-to-air digital television multichannel, which was launched by the Seven Network on 28 February 2016. 7flix targets a variety of viewers and offers drama, comedy, reality, docusoap, and movies. History On 18 Decembe ...
in Australia.


Home media

The complete first season became available on
Blu-ray The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of sto ...
and
DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...
on September 18, 2015, as an
Amazon.com Amazon.com, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational technology company focusing on e-commerce, cloud computing, online advertising, digital streaming, and artificial intelligence. It has been referred to as "one of the most influential economi ...
exclusive. On November 29, 2017,
Hulu Hulu () is an American subscription streaming service majority-owned by The Walt Disney Company, with Comcast's NBCUniversal holding a minority stake. It was launched on October 29, 2007 and it offers a library of films and television serie ...
acquired the exclusive streaming rights to the series. Both seasons of ''Agent Carter'' were made available on
Disney+ The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and interest of an audience or gives pleasure and deligh ...
at launch, on November 12, 2019.


Reception


Ratings

Maureen Ryan of ''
Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' blamed both seasons' low viewership on "the questionable scheduling decisions" made by then ABC president Paul Lee, saying that the series "has received lackluster promotion, especially or its second season The botched rollout of season two included a changed premiere date and episodes that were difficult to access in advance on Marvel's dreadful media site. Capping the mishandling is the fact that the full first season was only made available on ABC.com days before season two began, which frustrated viewers who might have wanted to jump on board in advance."


Critical response

The
review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...
website
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
reported a 96% approval rating with an average rating of 7.9/10 based on 50 reviews for the first season. The website's consensus reads, "Focusing on Peggy Carter as a person first and an action hero second makes ''Marvel's Agent Carter'' a winning, stylish drama with bursts of excitement and an undercurrent of cheeky fun". The second season scored a 76% approval rating with an average score of 8/10 based on 21 reviews. The website's consensus reads, "A move from New York to Hollywood gives ''Agent Carter'' new territory to explore, as the series continues to search for a storyline as dynamic as its heroine".
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 72 out of 100 based on 27 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews" for the series overall.


Accolades

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Saturn Awards The Saturn Awards are American awards presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. The awards were created to honor science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, but have since grown to reward other films be ...
, Best Superhero Adaptation Television Series , ''Agent Carter'' , , , - , Best Actress in a Television Series ,
Hayley Atwell Hayley Elizabeth Atwell (born 5 April 1982) is a British and American actress. Born and raised in London, Atwell studied acting at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, and made her stage debut in a 2005 production of James Kerr's translation ...
, , , - , Best Guest Performance in a Television Series ,
Dominic Cooper Dominic Edward Cooper (born 2 June 1978) is an English actor known for his portrayal of comic book characters Jesse Custer on the AMC show ''Preacher'' (2016–2019) and young Howard Stark in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, with appearances ...
, , , - ! scope="row" rowspan="3" , 2016 , Visual Effects Society Awards , Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Photoreal Episode , "
Now is Not the End "Now is Not the End" is the first episode of the first season of the American television series '' Agent Carter''. It features the Marvel Comics character Peggy Carter as she goes undercover to try clear the name of her friend Howard Stark. The ...
" , , , - ,
Make-Up Artists and Hair Stylists Guild Awards Cosmetics are constituted mixtures of chemical compounds derived from either natural sources, or synthetically created ones. Cosmetics have various purposes. Those designed for personal care and skin care can be used to cleanse or protect ...
, Television and New Media Series – Best Period and/or Character Hair Styling , ''Agent Carter'' , , , - ,
Saturn Awards The Saturn Awards are American awards presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. The awards were created to honor science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, but have since grown to reward other films be ...
, Best Superhero Adaptation Television Series , ''Agent Carter'' , ,


Cancellation

Arguing for the renewal of the series for a third season following its low viewership, Ryan said that "letting the show die would be a serious mistake, for the network and for the bigger Disney-ABC conglomerate...These days, entertainment properties have to be viewed not just through the lens of their ratings (admittedly weak for ''Agent Carter''). They have to be evaluated within the context of the overall value they bring to any entertainment colossus, and what ''Agent Carter'' adds to Disney-ABC is simply too valuable to give up ...
ringing Ringing may mean: Vibrations * Ringing (signal), unwanted oscillation of a signal, leading to ringing artifacts * Vibration of a harmonic oscillator ** Bell ringing * Ringing (telephony), the sound of a telephone bell * Ringing (medicine), a ri ...
something different to the company's superhero portfolio." She suggested if ABC did not renew the series for broadcast, that it should explore other opportunities, such as debuting on its online Watch ABC app, or being sold to Netflix, where "fans of super-heroic storytelling already flock to" and ''Agent Carter''s "status as a period piece—which may have harmed it on broadcast—could be a real draw for Netflix viewers". Ryan also felt Marvel "could copy what
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
is doing with ''Star Trek''" by creating a subscription service for a monthly fee, where consumers could access Marvel's films and televisions shows "as well as premium exclusives like a third season of ''Agent Carter''". Ryan concluded, "A third ''Agent Carter'' season could help solidify Marvel's standing not just with female fans, but with everyone who appreciates excellent and adventurous storytelling." In March 2016, Fazekas said the producers felt "bad" about the chances for a third season due to the series' low viewership, adding she "would love to see it live on, even if it's in some other form, digital or whatever. I doubt that there's a
Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
play for it." She also added that ABC wanted some sort of conclusion to the series, and so the writers and producers would find a way to conclude the lingering plot threads in some form if the series was not renewed. On May 12, 2016, ABC canceled the series. Loeb stated in August 2016 that he did not understand the cancellation, as "there were no conversations" regarding the series' future between ABC and Marvel, with the latter simply receiving a call from ABC saying ''Agent Carter'' was canceled. He added that since the networks decide what content they would like from Marvel Television, "if someone wants to call and say, 'We want a two-hour ''Agent Carter'' ilm specialfor May 2017,' . We'll put together the greatest ''Agent Carter'' movie we can." Atwell added that she was also not part of the conversation to cancel the series and called it "a network political thing" since ABC wanted her to headline the more "mainstream" drama ''
Conviction In law, a conviction is the verdict reached by a court of law finding a defendant guilty of a crime. The opposite of a conviction is an acquittal (that is, "not guilty"). In Scotland, there can also be a verdict of " not proven", which is cons ...
'' "to get their ratings up" instead of staying on ''Agent Carter'', which Atwell felt had gained a "cult following". After speculation regarding a revival for the series by Netflix, chief content officer
Ted Sarandos Theodore Anthony Sarandos Jr. is an American businessman who serves as the co-chief executive officer and chief content officer for Netflix. Early life Sarandos was born in Phoenix, Arizona. His father was Ted Sarandos Sr, an electrician, and ...
stated the streaming service passed on reviving ''Agent Carter'' because it is "looking for truly original brands to own and in that Marvel space we already have" original Marvel series. He also added that due to existing international broadcasting "deal complexities" for the series, Netflix would not have been able to air ''Agent Carter'' globally, as "some of those output partners still had it on the air, so they would argue its covered by their output eals Unfortunately, it was a business decision more than a creative one." When the series was canceled shortly after the release of '' Captain America: Civil War'', in which Carter dies, Meagan Damore of
Comic Book Resources ''Comic Book Resources'', also known by the initialism CBR, is a website dedicated to the coverage of comic book–related news and discussion. History Comic Book Resources was founded by Jonah Weiland in 1995 as a development of the Kingdom Co ...
felt that "for all intents and purposes" Carter had "effectively been phased out of the Marvel Cinematic Universe", and the universe had subsequently lost "a wonderful role model and...inspiration" to fans of the character and series. Damore lamented the fact that the second season's
cliffhanger A cliffhanger or cliffhanger ending is a plot device in fiction which features a main character in a precarious or difficult dilemma or confronted with a shocking revelation at the end of an episode or a film of serialized fiction. A cliffhang ...
ending had been left unresolved, and that viewers would never get the chance to see Carter's "happy ending", despite knowing she gets one, leaving the character's "fate unfulfilled, languishing in the obscurity of 'what could have beens. She also noted that Marvel had now lost "the opportunity to show several prominent MCU events, not the least of which is the founding of S.H.I.E.L.D.", and added that despite making "leaps and bounds for women in the MCU, the same ould notbe said for people of color", wishing the series had addressed Asian American women like
Hazel Ying Lee Hazel Ying Lee (; August 24, 1912 – November 25, 1944) was an American pilot who flew for the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) during World War II. Early life Lee was born in Portland, Oregon. Her parents were Yuet Lee and Ssiu Lan Wong, f ...
, one of 38
Women Airforce Service Pilots The Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) (also Women's Army Service Pilots or Women's Auxiliary Service Pilots) was a civilian women pilots' organization, whose members were United States federal civil service employees. Members of WASP became t ...
who died in the line of duty, or Black women like Harriet Ida Pickens and Frances Wills, the first two Black members of the
United States Naval Reserve The United States Navy Reserve (USNR), known as the United States Naval Reserve from 1915 to 2005, is the Reserve Component (RC) of the United States Navy. Members of the Navy Reserve, called Reservists, are categorized as being in either the Se ...
.


Future


Suggested spin-off podcast

In March 2015, Butters revealed that there had been discussions with ''
Thrilling Adventure Hour ''The Thrilling Adventure Hour'' was a staged production and podcast in the style of old time radio that was held monthly at Largo, a Los Angeles nightclub located in the former Coronet Theatre. The show ran from March 2005 to April 2015. Each ...
'' co-creator Ben Blacker about turning the fictional ''Captain America Adventure Program'' radio show from the first season into a real podcast. Butters said these well-received segments had not been part of their original pitch to Marvel, and that a second season renewal for the series would help the podcast's chances. She said the potential episodes would be "little fifteen-minute storylines".


Planned third season

Before the cancellation, Atwell said on the series' future, "We think that there could be more to come....the econd seasonfinale doesn't suggest that that's it and they live happily ever after; that's the end. We know that's not the case. They've done it in a very clever way which wraps up and that gives the audience a very satisfying conclusion but they're not quite finishing it". Fazekas explained that an early idea from Markus and McFeely was to set the third season in London, but "you can put the show anywhere, because it's spies. he location isall going to be determined by what story we want to tell. I loved os Angeles I loved how it looked, I loved how it looked on Peggy. We would be very happy to do another L.A. season, but we're not married to it." Fazekas added that seeds for a third season had been planted throughout the second, and that the end of the second season—with someone shooting Thompson and taking the M. Carter file—was "very much tied to a third season arc", with the shooter and their reasoning already determined. Atwell said the third season would have gone "further back into arter'spast" while having "a possible kind of twist... into something to do with erfamily". She also added that more insight would have been provided on Carter's brother, Michael. Writer Jose Molina expanded on this in July 2018, stating that the season would have focused on the investigation of the assassination attempt on Thompson, along with the revelation that Michael was still alive and involved in some "very nefarious, super-villainous shenanigans".


Feature films and other television series

D'Arcy went on to reprise his role as Jarvis in the MCU film '' Avengers: Endgame'' (2019), marking the first time a character introduced in an MCU television series appears in an MCU film. Additionally, Gjokaj reprises his role as Sousa in the seventh season of ''Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.'' The episode " Alien Commies from the Future!" is set in 1955, eight years after the events of ''Agent Carter'' season two, and sees Sousa as the head of the S.H.I.E.L.D.-run
Area 51 Area 51 is the common name of a highly classified United States Air Force (USAF) facility within the Nevada Test and Training Range. A remote detachment administered by Edwards Air Force Base, the facility is officially called Homey Airport ...
base. In "
Out of the Past ''Out of the Past'' (billed in the United Kingdom as ''Build My Gallows High'') is a 1947 film noir directed by Jacques Tourneur and starring Robert Mitchum, Jane Greer, and Kirk Douglas. The film was adapted by Daniel Mainwaring (using the pseu ...
", the S.H.I.E.L.D. team fakes Sousa's death, allowing him to join the team as they travel to future time periods.


Potential revival

While promoting ''Endgame'', Markus and McFeely were asked about the potential for ''Agent Carter'' to be revived by Disney's new streaming service
Disney+ The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and interest of an audience or gives pleasure and deligh ...
. McFeely acknowledged that the series' fanbase was "really dedicated", but was unsure if there was enough support to justify the cost of making the series and its period setting.


References


External links

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