In a couple of new interviews with Hayley Atwell, the Agent Carter star has been talking about Peggy Carter’s arrival in Hollywood for the second season of the Marvel show and the fact that there may well be a Dancing With The Stars moment in the offing, the actress also talks Dr Strange connections and the camaraderie that Peggy has with Jarvis and Howard Stark.
On season 2’s Hollywood setting and how Wilkes being taken out by Zero Matter has affected Peggy, Hayley said: “She’s immediately attracted to Wilkes, and suddenly she’s involving her personal life, or matters of the heart, in her work. And that, in her past, has always backfired. So I think, here, we have another example of that. It’s a very scary place for Peggy because she feels that it’s totally her fault that the situation has gotten to this point. That’s kind of a scar that she carries a lot. As a spy, you’re in danger of obviously hurting yourself, but you’re also putting other people in danger. And that’s what she’s done here with Wilkes. It’s a very difficult time. It’s not just a mission that’s going wrong, but it’s someone that she’s starting to have feelings for who is now threatened.”
And of Peggy’s Hollywood arrival: “It’s a bit like anything that you come across in life. You come guns blazing, and very excited, and confident, because the environment changes and it’s glamorous and beautiful, and the start of new job, and all of these things. [And] in Peggy’s case, a new wardrobe as well. [But] then when reality starts to hit, the rose-tinted spectacles start to shift, and you’re back to doing very difficult work. The nature of Peggy’s work is always going to be quite extraordinary for her. It’s always going to be bizarre and surreal, and she’s not going to know, from one day to the next, what she’s going to experience.”
Meanwhile Hayley also talked about the relationship between Jarvis (James D’Arcy), Howard (Dominic Cooper) and Peggy: “They’re the Three Musketeers, really. [Jarvis and Howard] provide the absolutely invaluable structure to what she’s doing. They work and do well together. Howard is a genius, and is able to fill in the scientific gaps that Peggy can’t. Also, he’s a man of means, which means that she’s able to use that to her advantage. She’s able to rely on Howard for all sorts of gadgets that she might need, [and for] ways into places that she couldn’t get to by herself, just because of the power that Howard has. That’s very helpful to her. Then, also because of the relationship they had in Season 1, that betrayal that happened where she had to confront Howard, she’s had to accept the intentions that he had behind his betrayal, [and] it deepened their friendship. There’s a level of trust and authenticity this season, which means that they can actually have a lot of fun with each other. “
Speaking about the possibility of a Dr Strange appearance (it seems Zero Matter may be related in someway to the Dr) she said: “That would be fantastic. I would love that. That’s the first time I’ve heard of using that connection at all. I think that playing Peggy is the gift that keeps on giving. I’ve been re-employed by the same boss for quite a few years, which is really nice and really kind of rare in this job as an actor. I would fully embrace it. I feel very grateful to Marvel for the opportunity that they’ve given me in playing Peggy, and the experiences I’ve had. The people I’ve come to know through it, it’s such a life changing experience really. I’m happy to continue playing Peggy and seeing how many exciting and interesting ways she can be woven into other stories. That’s what’s great about the Marvel Universe is that it can be ever expanding. They’ve got such a winning formula now. They know how to exceed expectations, so I really do feel like anything can happen. I’m just taking each thing as it comes and each opportunity as it presents itself.”
Hayley also spoke about the possibility of a Dancing With The Stars type moment that the showrunners have been talking up: “I don’t know what I can really say about it, other than that it’s an example of the showrunners taking the show in a very different direction and being not afraid to take risks and find another way to have a lot of fun with it. It’s a genre show. We know what the genre is. We know what the audience is, and I think one of the saving graces of the show is that we don’t take ourselves too seriously and we’re willing to play around with it.”
Agent Carter continues on ABC Monday nights at 9.00pm
Sources: TV Insider (Hayley in Hollywood, Jarvis, Howard and Peggy) and ComicBook (Dr Strange, Dancing With The Stars)