The director behind Marvel’s Hawkeye on Disney Plus has opened up about the origin of Rogers: The Musical, a fictional stage show depicted in the series and inspired by the life of Captain America.
Fans caught their first glimpse at the Broadway production in the Hawkeye trailer, as Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner) takes his children to the theatre during a trip to New York City.
Based on what we’ve seen, it seems like he won’t be very impressed with the musical, having been a first-hand witness of several of the events it depicts – such as 2012’s Battle of New York (from the first Avengers film).
Speaking to RadioTimes.com, Hawkeye director Rhys Thomas (Saturday Night Live) explained how the idea for Rogers: The Musical was first pitched and the work that went into making it a reality.
He said: “That was an instance of making an off-the-cuff suggestion during a meeting with [producer] Kevin Feige, and then all of a sudden realising that he took it seriously, and we’re really gonna do it.
“It was great. I got to work with [composer] Marc Shaiman – he wrote the actual piece of music for it. And yeah, just the joy of imagining what an Avengers-themed musical would be like in the MCU.”
Shaiman is a big name in the world of musical theatre, having penned the music and lyrics to the wildly popular Hairspray musical, while he’s also a seven-time Academy Award nominee for work on films including Sleepless in Seattle, South Park and Mary Poppins Returns.
“It was kind of trying to walk that line of not taking it too seriously, but it needed to deliver on what people expected as well,” explained Thomas, discussing the challenge of finding a “sweet spot” for the musical to exist in.
Fans probably shouldn’t hold their breath for Rogers: The Musical to actually happen anytime soon though, as it was seemingly created only to serve a narrative purpose.
“The initial goal was just to annoy Clint,” he added. “It was really just the idea of what would be the most annoying place to put Jeremy Renner’s version of Clint? Having to sit through a musical and watch a really enthusiastic version of him tap dancing across stage.”
Hawkeye premieres on Disney Plus on Wednesday 24th November. Check out more of our Fantasy coverage or visit our TV Guide to see what’s on tonight.