There's A Reason Hawkeye Is MIA In 'Avengers: Infinity War'

If you've been watching the Avengers: Infinity War trailers on a loop since they came out, you probably noticed someone was missing from the movie. Hawkeye, the bow and arrow-wielding agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. played by Jeremy Renner, doesn't appear to be in the new film, leaving many to ask: why isn't Hawkeye in Avengers: Infinity War? There's a simple answer to this question: he's retired.

You may not remember, but in Avengers: Age of Ultron it was revealed that Hawkeye, whose real name is Clint Barton, has a secret family. Apparently, he's married with two kids (now three; his wife was pregnant in the film). After Ultron was defeated, Clint decided to retire from the superhero life and focus on being a husband and a father.

However, Clint did step out of retirement briefly to assist Captain America in his fight against Tony Stark in Captain America: Civil War. But after Team Cap lost the fight and ended up being briefly imprisoned, Clint decided to return to his retirement, meaning he's out of hero game... at least for now. Marvel Studios president Kevien Feige promised io9 that there are "big, big story things coming up for Hawkeye" so fans will just have to be patient to see how and when Hawkeye pops back up again.

The Russo brothers, who directed both Infinity War and the upcoming Avengers 4, also told io9 that Hawkeye is still a part of the MCU and there's more to come with his story. Because they worked on both films at the same time, Joe Russo said this made them make "certain choices" concerning Hawkeye and the ramifications of him siding against the U.S. government in Civil War. "That led us to a very specific story with him that, as I've said before is a long play, not a short play," Russo said. "Audiences just need to be patient."

So even though you won't be seeing Hawkeye in Infinity War, you should be able to spot him in Avengers 4. Seeing as how it's the final Avengers film and Hawkeye was a part of the original team, it only seems right that he'd return for the group's final battle. Plus, he's already credited on IMDB as being in Avengers 4, which is a very good sign.

There's no word on whether or not fans will see Hawkeye's secret family again though. That may have been a one and done deal. Unless Hawkeye finally gets his own film, which is something fans have been wanting. Hawkeye, the Black Widow, and Mark Ruffalo's Hulk haven't had their own solo films. With the introduction of Hawkeye's family there's been even more interest in having a solo film for the character, but if that's happening down the road there hasn't been any mention of it.

Even though Hawkeye won't be physically present in Infinity War he'll probably come up in conversation. Surely his best friend Natasha will have some kind of explanation about why he isn't even fighting by her side in their biggest battle to date. Or perhaps Cap will ask how Hawkeye is doing and maybe pass along his thanks for his help during Civil War. No matter how it happens, it would be shocking if Hawkeye isn't at least mentioned, especially since he's the only one from the original team not present for Infinity War. Surely his absence will be felt by the others.

Although Hawkeye will certainly be missed in Infinity War, you should definitely still check it out when the film hits theaters on Friday, April 27.

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