Warning: This story contains spoilers for Hawkeye episode 4.

Hawkeye directors Bert and Bertie discuss episode 4's devastating Avengers: Endgame reference. Marvel's latest live-action Disney+ series, Hawkeye, has been underway for several weeks now, and it only has a couple more to go. The show focuses on Jeremy Renner's Clint Barton, the often-overlooked Avenger with a special talent for archery. In this street-level adventure, Clint has teamed up with aspiring hero Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld) to solve a murder and put the memory of his vigilante persona, Ronin, to rest for good. Naturally, it isn't as easy as one might hope.

This week brought the arrival of Hawkeye episode 4, an installment that somehow found a way to pierce fans' hearts in the midst of a gripping fight scene. As Kate and Clint go head-to-head with both Maya Lopez (Alaqua Cox) and Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), Kate goes tumbling over the edge of a building. Only a grappling hook keeps her from plummeting to her death, but the sight of a partner suspended in the air is enough to send Clint back to Vormir and Avengers: Endgame. As viewers know all too well, Clint's best friend Natasha (Scarlett Johansson) died after falling off a cliff, and Kate's position in Hawkeye episode 4 was too similar to Nat's.

Related: Hawkeye Accidentally Undermines Iron Man's Perfect Endgame Line

Following the release of the episode, Screen Rant got the opportunity to speak to Hawkeye directors Bert and Bertie and ask them directly about the Avengers: Endgame reference. Bertie in particular was able to expand upon their intentions with the scene and how that ties into Clint's relationship with Kate. She said:

Literally everything that was going through your mind, and probably everyone's mind watching that, was what's going through--  It's like history repeating itself. She gets thrown off spectacularly and we just get a sense of the clip that's been attached to her. But you really don't know until she gets held at the bottom there. So I think it for Clint, and for Jeremy performing it -- he's very attached to Clint Barton's history, and I think it really comes back to him all in that moment, that iconic scene in Endgame. I think it's that history repeating itself and how precious life is and that he really can't let another mentee figure come to come to crops in his hands or under his watch.

I've been hurt before and also I can't be responsible. That was my past. I got it wrong. I'm trying to get my life right again. But my life keeps coming back to haunt me. So yes, pushing her away is the easiest thing for him to do at that moment. And the most necessary, he feels.

Natasha looks up as she hangs from the cliff on Vormir in Avengers: Endgame

Since the very first episode of Hawkeye, Black Widow's death has loomed large over Clint, and it seems to come to a head with episode 4's parallel. Earlier in the episode, Clint and Kate bonded over Christmas festivities, investigating Kate's stepfather-to-be, and sharpshooting tricks. It was perhaps the first time in Hawkeye that Clint relaxed a bit, but that ended the minute he saw Kate in Natasha's position. As Bertie said, it very much feels like history repeating itself, and it's no wonder that Clint immediately lashed out.

How this impacts his growing relationship with Kate from this point on remains to be seen, but there's a chance that Clint will eventually come to see this as a second chance. He couldn't save Natasha, but he can protect Kate and train her to take care of herself. Hawkeye only has two episodes left, so one has to hope he'll reach this realization sooner rather than later. Other MCU Phase 4 projects have put a special focus on confronting past traumas, and Hawkeye is no exception. Hopefully, it'll end with Clint finding some peace after several difficult years.

More: Hawkeye: Every Marvel Easter Egg & Reference In Episode 4

Hawkeye releases new episodes Wednesdays on Disney+.

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