Agents of SHIELD’s Future: Season 8 & MCU Possibilities

Warning: SPOILERS for Agents of SHIELD‘s season 7 finale.

Sadly, there’s no chance of an Agents of SHIELD season 8 – but that doesn’t necessarily mean the stars couldn’t return. In 2013, Marvel Television launched what was originally envisioned as a tie-in TV series for the MCU. Agents of SHIELD starred a group of ordinary SHIELD agents who lived in a world of gods and super-soldiers, alien invaders and time travelers. The first season stuck close to the MCU, orienting its entire narrative around the Hydra twist in Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Since then, however, the films and Marvel TV shows have parted ways.

Agents of SHIELD season 7 used time travel to celebrate the mythology it had built over the last seven years. The SHIELD team found themselves caught up in a Time War with an alien race called the Chronicoms, and the adventure revealed the secret history of their base at the Lighthouse, the family history of their allies the Koenigs, and several new Inhuman threats. It was a smart approach, turning Agents of SHIELD season 7 into a true “Last Hurrah” for what had become Marvel’s flagship TV series.

But Agents of SHIELD season 7 is now over, and naturally viewers are wondering if there’s any chance at all of seeing their beloved SHIELD team reunite. Unfortunately, the odds don’t look good.

Agents of SHIELD Season 7 Was “The Final Mission”

The crew of Agents of SHIELD had originally believed their story would end with season 5 – the final episode of that season was even called “The End” – but to their surprise, ABC renewed the show for two more seasons. From the outset, there were reports Agents of SHIELD season 7 would be the end of the road. “That’s the word I’veheard,” Clark Gregg observed. “The announcement I read was, two more seasons, six and seven.” Marketing for season 7 consistently made the same point, advertising this as the team’s final mission, and that even became a major plot point when the Chronicom Enoch prophesied the team would disband after winning the Time War. Sadly, this wasn’t just a marketing strategy; Agents of SHIELD has come to an end, a one-year-forward scene in the season 7 finale stresses the team have gone their separate ways, and even the sets have been torn down at the studio.

Marvel Television Has Been Wound Down

Marvel Television itself has essentially been wound down now. In October 2019, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige was given an expanded remit as Chief Creative Officer of Marvel Entertainment, and shortly afterwards there were reports Marvel Television was being absorbed into the film studio. Almost all ongoing and even upcoming live-action Marvel Television shows have been pulled, with the sole exception of Helstrom, which isn’t being marketed as a Marvel project at all. All this means the specific division responsible for Agents of SHIELD effectively no longer exists, meaning there’s pretty much no chance of Agents of SHIELD season 8.

Season 7 Ends With A New Status Quo For The SHIELD Family

The SHIELD team has traditionally seen itself as a family, and as such it’s significant that the Agents of SHIELD season 7 finale confirmed the members of that family have gone their separate ways. Mack is now director of SHIELD, with May as head of the new Coulson Academy, and Yo-Yo and Daisy running their own SHIELD operations. Fitz and Simmons have retired, and the Coulson LMD appears to be an independent operative traveling the globe. This is a bittersweet conclusion, because no doubt viewers would be keen to see more of all these characters, but an Agents of SHIELD revival – in which the team get back together – seems almost impossible in narrative terms.

Agents of SHIELD Is Part Of The Marvel Multiverse

It’s safe to rule out Agents of SHIELD season 8, but that doesn’t necessarily mean none of these characters could ever return. The timeline clearly no longer connects to the mainstream MCU, but a reference to the Quantum Realm in the Agents of SHIELD season 7 finale was significant. It established Agents of SHIELD as part of the same Multiverse as the movies. The Multiverse is set to become important in the MCU’s Phase 4 and beyond, playing a prominent role in Loki and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. So it’s not beyond the realm of possibility some of the SHIELD team could make the jump to the movies – but it’s not easy, and the odds don’t look good. Sadly, in all likelihood, this really was the final mission.

About The Author

Thomas Bacon
(4893 Articles Published)

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Tom Bacon is one of Screen Rant’s staff writers, as well as a Peer Mentor for new writers and a member of the Care Team, offering support and a listening ear to members of the Comics group. A lifelong fan of major franchises including Star Wars, Doctor Who, and Marvel, Tom is delighted his childhood is back – and this time it’s cool. You can find him on Twitter @TomABacon.

A graduate of Edge Hill University, Tom remains strongly connected with his alma mater as a volunteer chaplain. He’s heavily involved with his local church, and anyone who checks him out on Twitter will swiftly learn he’s into British politics too.

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