Hawkeye actor Vera Farmiga admits to only having watched Iron Man when she signed on for the role. Iron Man was the first movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and was released way back in 2008. The movie, which kicked off Phase 1 of the MCU, starred Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark/Iron Man, a role he would reprise for a further nine movies, plus a cameo in 2008’s The Incredible Hulk. It was a box office success, grossing $585.8 million against a budget of $140 million and receiving two Academy Award nominations. 

Since the success of the MCU, and with Phase 3 having reached its end, many of the heroes audiences enjoyed across multiple movies are getting a rebirth via TV shows; Hawkeye is one such character. Played by Jeremy Renner, who debuting in an uncredited cameo in Thor followed by a full appearance in 2012’s The Avengers, Hawkeye has spent his time on film stuck in a supporting role, leading Disney+ to release a Hawkeye miniseries following Clint Barton and protégé Kate Bishop as they confront old enemies. The show stars Hailee Steinfeld as Kate, Tony Dalton as Jack Duquesne, and Linda Cardellini as Laura Barton, Clint's Wife.

Related: How Many Episodes Of Hawkeye Are On Disney+ (& When The Finale Releases)

Farmiga signed on to play the role of Eleanor Bishop, Kate’s mother, despite her apparent lack of MCU movie experience. In an interview with THR, Farmiga reveals she is very behind with watching things like movies and TV shows, and that she is currently only halfway through watching hit HBO show Game of Thrones, which finished in 2019. Also, perhaps unusually for an MCU star, the actor also admits that the only instalment of the MCU she had watched prior to joining the cast of Hawkeye was Iron Man:

I’m so late to many of these ballgames. I saw the first Iron Man; that was the only thing I saw when I got this job. And then I had time to do a deep dive.

Vera Farmiga and Tony Dalton in Hawkeye

Farmiga first rose to prominence for her performance as a struggling drug addict in 2004 drama Down to the Bone, before becoming known to a wider audience for her Academy Award nominated turn opposite George Clooney in Jason Reitman's 2009 comedy-drama Up In the Air. After success in the horror genre with The Conjuring movies, Hawkeye signifies Farmiga's first foray into the world of superhero movies/TV shows. It seems likely that Farmiga will have watched the majority of the MCU movies by now, especially as several of them will really help her to understand Hawkeye as a show and a character better, and this should, in turn, allow her to produce a better character in Eleanor.

Hawkeye has already received acclaim and popularity despite having only dropped its first two episodes yesterday. And, with a spinoff show Echo planned for development too, it seems possible that Hawkeye could be expanded beyond simply a miniseries in the future. Whether Farmiga will be involved in any future series' remains unclear, and for now, fans will have to make do with watching her in Hawkeye's six-episode run.

Next: How Hawkeye Changed Kate Bishop's Marvel Comics Origin Story

Source: THR

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