Infinity War 'Opens a New Playground' for Agents of SHIELD

The events of Avengers: Infinity War will open storytelling opportunities for Agents of SHIELD and showrunner Jed Whedon is very excited about it.

One of the biggest unresolved plotlines in the MCU is the Avengers still believing that Agent Phil Coulson was killed by Loki during The Avengers in 2012. Since then (and after coming back to life), the SHIELD member has been secretly guiding a group of capable fighters of his own, while his former big-screen pals deal with their own issues. With Infinity War and its still-untitled sequel, Avengers 4, promising to tie all loose narrative ends together, a resolution to this ongoing mystery is coming and in a way that no one would have predicted. But aside from Coulson's imminent reveal linking the two pockets of MCU closer together, it seems like whatever goes down in Avengers 3 will also have significant effects to Agents of SHIELD's future - as it should be considering the magnitude of the forthcoming epic blockbuster.

Appearing on a panel at WonderCon (via Deadline) for the show, showrunner Jed Whedon teased what viewers can expect from Agents of SHIELD given the threat of Thanos taking over the galaxy looming in the shadows. For the most part, the ABC series has mined inspiration from the narratives of its big screen counterparts to maintain the "it's all connected" tagline, despite the fact that the films barely acknowledge the Marvel shows. And while it still could be the case moving on despite fan clamor for a crossover, Agents of SHIELD will continue to serve its purpose as a spin-off series for the MCU films by adapting to whatever storylines they tackle.

“The movies blaze a path. When Doctor Strange came out it introduced us to magic, which gave us Ghost Rider; when [Guardians of the Galaxy] came out, we were introduced to space. We are waiting for that movie to come out so it can open a new playground for us.”

While there is no doubt that Agents of SHIELD will be able to make a way to connect with whatever goes down in Infinity War considering how innovative they've become in taking on connected film narratives, the more important question is whether they'll have the opportunity to do so or not. The pioneering Marvel TV series has yet to be renewed for a sixth season, and folks behind the show are preparing for the worst if they don't get picked back up again. With news of Inhumans supposedly being silently canceled earlier this year, many presumed that the chances of the Agents of SHIELD getting another season order are looking pretty good. But up until now, no announcements have been made.

That's, of course, unless there's something towards the end of the season that might reference the arrival of Thanos on Earth. Considering Agents of SHIELD's play on the timeline, it's possible that folks behind the series can work their way around the matter. Nonetheless, it would be interesting to know where Whedon and his team can bring the gang and hopefully Coulson (if he survives until then) moving forward.

MORE: Agents of SHIELD May Have Revealed Who REALLY Destroyed Earth

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season 5 continues Friday, March 30th with ‘Rise and Shine’ at 9pm on ABC.

Source: Deadline