Could Jeremy Renner’s Hawkeye be returning in 2026? Despite the huge cast already confirmed for Avengers: Doomsdayit’s still unclear whether several high-profile names are actually returning in the next MCU crossover. Of the original Avengers, only Chris Hemsworth’s Thor is officially on the bill, but rumors abound that his teammates may well join him. Chris Evans might be the most pressing question mark at the minute, with Mark Ruffalo widely expected to be confirmed, but Jeremy Renner is arguably the most intriguing prospect.
And now, it seems we might have a big hint of whether Hawkeye will return in Doomsday. Renner spoke to ComicBook’s Chris Killian during the press circuit for the upcoming fourth season of Mayor of Kingstownwhich returns to screens on October 26th, and offered his thoughts on Hawkeye’s MCU status. Specifically, he discussed whether Barton is retired and whether there might be anything that would bring him back as an active hero if he was:
“I think he started retired… but he’s always pulled out of retirement, you know. I think he’s a family man; you always know where his allegiance lies, and he’s always come out of retirement, man. Until he’s killed, he’s always gonna be working.”
Hawkeye’s Future Reveals The Harsh Reality of MCU Heroes
Strictly speaking, of course, Hawkeye was retired when the events of his solo show on Disney+ kicked off, but was pulled back into action when his past as Ronin caught up with him. He’d also retired before that, heading into Avengers: Age of Ultronand was forced to sit out the events of Avengers: Infinity War under house arrest in the wake of Captain America: Civil War. What marks him as a hero is that, as Renner says, he always comes back.
If Hugh Jackman’s curse of having to play Wolverine until he’s 90 looks bad, at least he has the possibility of a peaceful retirement; for Hawkeye, it’s death or nothing. And it’s not without precedent. During the We Love You 3000 tour after Endgame‘s release, Joe Russo used Iron Man’s grim fate as a precursor to other potential hero deaths, for a very good reason:
“I think, in a way, Tony Stark was always fated to die. And… here’s the thing about our culture that’s interesting. A lot of people get upset about that, when I say something like that. But when you’re a hero, your job is to die. That is your job as a hero, is to sacrifice yourself for the greater good. And that’s what we’re trying to teach people in the movie is that you’re either in it for yourself, or you’re in it for the community. And Tony was in it for the community.”
Combining those two quotes, things don’t look all that positive for Hawkeye when he inevitably answers the call for Avengers: Doomsday.
Mayor of Kingstown Season 4 begins on Paramount+ on October 26.
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