The Avengers Movie Has Its Hawkeye

By Ryan Fleming June 4, 2010

Comic book fans are a notoriously demanding bunch, especially when it comes to the development of a property they love- and with good reason. Years of visual abuse of beloved properties at the hands of Hollywood have been enough to make even the most optimistic fans curtail their enthusiasm with a dose of well earned cynicism. That being said, another piece of casting news from the Avengers movie should help assuage some of the fears that the movie will suck.

After months of rumors, the Hollywood Reporter is confirming that Academy Award Best Actor Nominee Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker, 28 Weeks Later) is officially in negotiations to take up the mantle of avenger Clint Barton, aka Hawkeye.

Renner will join a packed cast that includes Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark/Iron Man, Chris Evans as Steve Rogers/Captain America, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Don Cheadle as James Rhodes/War Machine, Scarlet Johansson as Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow, and Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury. The door is also open for Ed Norton to reprise his role as Bruce Banner/Hulk, but no deal is in place. Joss Whedon is set to direct.

There are also rumors (big emphasis on the “rumor” part) that Nathan Fillion (Firefly, Castle) will play Hank Pym/Ant-Man and Malin Ackerman (Watchmen, Couples Retreat) will play Janet van Dyne/Wasp. Take those with a healthy grain of salt though, as both are totally unconfirmed.

In the original Avengers history, Hawkeye began as a villain alongside the Black Widow, before he switched sides and joined the second lineup of the Avengers. However the movies seem to be following more closely to some of the principals of the Ultimates, which re-imagined the origin of Hawkeye and cast him as a black-ops soldier for Nick Fury, who worked with the Black Widow to take on the dirty jobs that the Ultimates could not be seen doing.

It has been a big week for Avengers news. First Captain America’s costume was leaked, followed by a look at what Thor will look like in costume.

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Ryan Fleming is the Gaming and Cinema Editor for Digital Trends. He joined the DT staff in 2009 after spending time covering…

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