Next week, the Marvel One Shot short film, Agent Carter will be released on the Iron Man 3 Blu-ray as Hayley Atwell reprises her character Peggy Carter for a solo adventure, one year after the events of Captain America: The First Avenger.
But that may not be the last time we see Agent Carter in action.
Deadline is reporting that Marvel is in the very early stages of development for a new ABC TV series that would focus on Agent Carter’s further adventures as a secret agent. The project doesn’t currently have a writer attached to it, nor is it known if Atwell will be interested in playing her role on a potential weekly television show. But the “Agent Carter” project is seen as a good fit for ABC because it would have a female lead and ABC’s dramas tend to be geared towards women.
By design, an “Agent Carter” TV series would have to be a period piece. But it might also be an ideal companion for “Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” as events in the potential “Agent Carter” show could delve into the early days of S.H.I.E.L.D. or foreshadow and explain events in the present.
“Agent Carter” also has the advantage of a largely blank slate for its main character. Peggy Carter was a supporting character in the Captain America comics, but she was overshadowed by Sharon Carter; a part which Emily VanCamp will play in Captain America/Agent 13. Because Peggy was never the primary focus in the comics, there will potentially be more creative freedom to flesh out her character on TV.
As for how Peggy and Sharon Carter are related… it’s a whole comics thing. First, Peggy was the older sister to Sharon, then she retconned into being Sharon’s much older aunt. And that’s bound to get another retcon in the future. It’s best not to think about it.
The decision of whether to bring “Agent Carter” to television may also hinge upon whether “Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” can capitalize on the popularity of The Avengers and bring in a big audience. If it can, then “Agent Carter” probably won’t be the only Marvel TV series in development.