Where Was The Real Maria Hill During ‘Spider-Man: Far From Home’?
This summer’s Spider-Man: Far From Home included characters from the larger Marvel universe. Samuel L. Jackson and Cobie Smulders reprised their roles of Nick Fury and Maria Hill. If you stayed to the very end of the credits for Spider-Man: Far From Home, you learned a surprise twist. Spoilers for Spider-Man: Far From Home follow.
Smulders is returning to the comic book world in a new ABC series. Stumptown is based on a Greg Rucka comic book. After a Television Critics Association panel for Stumptown, Smulders spoke with reporters about Spider-Man: Far From Home and her history in comic book adaptations. We’ll have more on Stumptown when it premieres September 25.
Maria Hill was not herself in ‘Spider-Man: Far From Home’
Okay, this is the major spoiler. In the last coda after the end credits, it is revealed that Maria Hill and Nick Fury were Skrulls in disguise. Nick Fury was on vacation on the Skrull spaceship, but we never found out where the real Maria Hill was. Neither did Smulders.
“Your guess is as good as mine,” Smulders said. “I don’t know but I’m sure she was on some sort of important mission.”
Cobie Smulders filmed ‘Spider-Man: Far From Home’ without knowing the twist
Many of the end credits codas in Marvel movies are the last things they film. That was the case with Spider-Man: Far From Home, so Smulders filmed the whole movie thinking she was playing the real Maria Hill.
“That was something that was added later,” Smulders said.
Why Cobie Smulders loves doing comic book movies and TV shows
Even though Stumptown is quite different from Marvel, Smulders loves the process of bringing the graphic form to life.
“The thing that I’ve always appreciated, especially when I joined the Marvel universe is just how everything is based in this wonderful creative art space,” Smulders said. “All these characters in all these movies were once in the mind of an artist put on paper. And I think that there’s something so beautiful to that It’s more tangible in a way. I’ve always appreciated it from that place. This is certainly an art form but it’s just a living, breathing graphic novel.”
Smulders can do her homework for Stumptown by reading the comic books.
“I always find it extremely helpful,” Smulders said. “I love playing a character that you can find a book on and get as much background information as possible. You get a sense of the city of Portland and the characters and the tone is so there because Greg is just such a great writer. So I love it. I always love projects that are backed up with as much information as possible. It makes me feel more grounded.”
ABC can let Cobie Smulders be in more Marvel movies
Smulders hopes Stumptown is her job nine months out of the year. Should S.H.I.E.L.D. need Maria Hill again, it helps that both the MCU and ABC are owned by Disney.
“Well, it’s all the same family so hopefully they can figure it out if they want to, if they need to,” Smulders said
Until then, does Stumptown come with any less pressure than the Marvel movies?
“Sure, but this is an opportunity to just do something a little different,” Smulders said. “I don’t really think about it the way that it reflects. I just kind of am in it and trying to make the best thing that I can make.”
Both roles definitely have Smulders kick butt, but she’ll have to do it all year on Stumptown.
“This is a whole other beast,” Smulders said. “The thing with doing the movies is you only have to be in really good shape for a couple of months. This will be the rest of my 30s.”
