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Credit: Marvel StudiosNew information has come to light regarding the future of one Marvel Cinematic Universe project and the star at the heart of it.
Marvel Studios is celebrating the successful release of Jake Schreier’s Thunderbolts* (2025), which is tracking for a $160-170 million opening weekend at the global box office. The Phase Five finisher sees the return of characters like Florence Pugh’s Yelena Belova and Sebastian Stan’s Bucky Barnes as they take on a new threat–one that could pose a big influence on the MCU moving forward.
Thunderbolts* comes after the lukewarm reaction to Captain America: Brave New World (2025). Marvel Phase Five has not been the best-received chapter of the franchise, with low points including Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023) and The Marvels (2023) on the big screen and Secret Invasion on Disney+.
The shows on Disney+ have often received mixed reviews. From the virality of Loki Season 2 to the discourse surrounding She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, the Phase Four introduction of small-screen projects has never truly been universally loved. In its first year on Disney+, Marvel Studios released many content, including WandaVision, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Loki, What If…?, and Hawkeye.
While the story of Hawkeye loosely plays into Thunderbolts* thanks to Florence Pugh’s Yelena character’s appearance, the new information regarding the Hawkeye series is all about the actor who brought the eponymous hero to the franchise: Jeremy Renner.
Marvel Studios’ Hawkeye hit Disney+ in late 2021 with a grounded, festive spin on the post-Avengers: Endgame (2019) Marvel Cinematic Universe. Set in a snow-draped New York City just days before Christmas, the six-episode miniseries follows Clint Barton (Renner) as he tries to leave his days as an Avenger—and the dark legacy of Ronin—behind him. But peace doesn’t come easily in the MCU.
Enter Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld), a sharp-shooting 22-year-old archer and die-hard Hawkeye fan who quickly finds herself wrapped up in Clint’s complicated past. What begins as a chance encounter unravels into a high-stakes partnership as the duo takes on the chaotic Tracksuit Mafia, uncovers the secrets behind Maya Lopez (Alaqua Cox), and ultimately confronts the looming return of the Kingpin himself—Wilson Fisk (Vincent D’Onofrio), last seen–at the time–in Netflix’s Daredevil.
The series draws heavy inspiration from Matt Fraction and David Aja’s beloved comic run, complete with visual nods and dry wit. It also cleverly weaves in Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), building off the events of 2021’s Black Widow and setting the stage for even more character crossovers in the MCU’s Disney+ era.
In a real-life ordeal that mirrors the bravery of his on-screen roles, Marvel star Jeremy Renner faced a harrowing brush with death on New Year’s Day 2023. While attempting to protect his nephew from a runaway 14,000-pound snowplow near his Lake Tahoe home, the Hawkeye actor was pulled underneath the vehicle, suffering over 30 broken bones, a collapsed lung, and critical injuries to his chest and face.
Renner later detailed the near-fatal moment in his 2025 memoir “My Next Breath.”
But true to superhero form, the Oscar-nominated actor embarked on an extraordinary journey of recovery, enduring multiple surgeries, intense physical therapy, and even hyperbaric chamber sessions to heal his shattered body. By mid-2024, against all odds, Renner returned to acting in Taylor Sheridan’s Mayor of Kingstown and joined the cast of Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery (2025).
With Marvel firmly back in the spotlight with its Deadpool & Wolverine (2024), Captain America: Brave New World, and Thunderbolts* run, Renner has revealed new information about his return to the MCU–and how it may never happen.
“‘They asked me to do Season 2, and they offered me half the money,'” Renner told High Performance (via Variety). “‘I’m like, Well, it’s going to take me twice the amount of work for half the amount of money, and eight months of my time, essentially, to do it for half the amount.’”
The Hollywood star, who made his MCU debut 14 years ago in Thor (2011), went on to suggest his accident may have had a role to play in the financial offer. “I’m like, ‘I’m sorry? Why? Did you think I’m only half the Jeremy because I got ran over? Maybe that’s why you want to pay me half of what I made on the first season.’”
Renner explained that it wasn’t Disney or Marvel who made the offer.
“This is not Marvel, mind you. This is like, just Disney, not even really Disney. It’s just the penny pinchers, the accountants. I told them to go fly a kite. I mean, just at the at the insult offer. So we didn’t see eye to eye on it,” Renner said. “Sadly, I still love the character. I’d still love to do it, but I had to defend myself. I didn’t ask for any more money, mind you. Just pay me what I made made the first season. So it’s all disheartening that that didn’t happen, but that’s fine. I’m happy to let that go, because my body’s probably thanking me, time and time again, that I’m not doing it right now. But we’ll see.”
With Renner turning down Hawkeye Season 2 at this time, could that mean Hailee Steinfeld–who recently hit the spotlight for her turn as Mary in Ryan Coogler’s Sinners (2025)–will headline her own series? After all, Kate Bishop was recruited by Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani) in the final moments of Nia DaCosta’s The Marvels.
While Hawkeye Season 2 is not yet on the calendar, MCU fans can look forward to projects like Eyes of Wakanda, Marvel Zombies, Ironheart, Wonder Man, and Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 on the small screen in the near future.
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