Hayley Atwell Says Marvel Filmed Multiple Storylines, Some of Which Were “Dropped”

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October 17, 2026

The Peggy Carter actor stayed spoiler-free but said Marvel tried different approaches.

Not everything Marvel shoots makes it to the screen, and Hayley Atwell says that was especially true of the studio’s latest return to Peggy Carter and Steve Rogers. “We shot different things, there were different storylines, some picked up, some developed, some dropped away,” she said on The Playlist’s Bingeworthy podcast.

Hayley Atwell Says Marvel Filmed Multiple Storylines, Some of Which Were Dropped
Image: The Movie Database (TMDB)

A Question About Reopening a Closed Chapter

Host Mike DeAngelo asked whether she had reservations about Marvel reopening Steve and Peggy’s chapter, according to The Playlist. The reference point is Avengers: Endgame: Encore, a re-release with a new scene in which Loki appears at the couple’s door. Atwell did not give spoilers, and The Playlist notes it is unclear whether Peggy’s storyline was among those changed or dropped. Collider and other outlets tie her comments to Avengers: Doomsday.

The Knock at the Door

To understand why the question matters, it helps to recall how Endgame originally ended. Steve returned the Infinity Stones, chose to remain in the past and shared the long-delayed dance with Peggy in her home, and then the film cut to black. The Encore edition keeps all of that and adds a beat. As the pair dance, a knock interrupts them. Steve ducks out of sight while Peggy answers, and Tom Hiddleston’s Loki, dressed in his TVA uniform, tells her that he can help both of them.

Co-director Anthony Russo has said that this extra moment is where Doomsday begins, according to IGN. The scene does not explain why Loki needs the couple or where it leads, which leaves plenty of room for the kind of storyline changes that Atwell describes.

What She Would Say, and What She Wouldn’t

Atwell stayed on the safe side of the spoiler line. She said there is “such meticulous care for delighting the fans” at Marvel and that the studio knows what it is doing. She also remarked that it is rare for an actor to have a character “sit beside you for so many years,” and said she would be willing to discuss exploring Captain Carter further in live action.

That last comment is the closest she came to addressing the rumors. Trade reports have said Peggy would return as Captain Carter in Doomsday, but Atwell has not confirmed it, per The Playlist.

Fifteen Years of Peggy Carter

Few Marvel performers have carried a single role across as many formats as Atwell. Her path with the character looks like this:

That history explains why the character feels like more than a supporting figure. Peggy has been a love interest, an agent, a leader and a multiverse variant, and each version has given fans a reason to ask what comes next.

The Encore Effect

The re-release itself has become part of the conversation. Avengers: Endgame Encore opened on September 25 and topped the domestic box office with about $26 million, helped by new material that reaches beyond the 2019 original. Along with the scene at Peggy’s door, it includes post-credits footage that links to the TVA from the Loki series. Together, the additions signal that the studio sees the earlier film as a launching point for Doomsday, and that decisions about Steve and Peggy are tied to the larger plot rather than to a simple farewell.

Chris Evans is among the confirmed cast members for Doomsday, which makes the couple’s storyline easier to follow. If Steve is back in the picture, it stands to reason that the person he left behind in the past is part of the story in some form, though Marvel has not said how.

Why Cut Storylines Are Not Unusual

Large franchise films often shoot more material than they use. Scripts change during production, reshoots reshape the plot, and test screenings can lead to new priorities. For a film as complicated as Doomsday, which brings together characters from several eras of the Marvel universe, it would be surprising if every storyline survived to the final cut. Atwell’s remark is therefore less a revelation than a confirmation of a normal part of the process, although the context makes it more interesting to fans who are watching for any clue about Steve and Peggy.

Looking Ahead

Avengers: Doomsday, directed by Joe and Anthony Russo, opens in theaters on December 18. Atwell made her remarks while promoting her MGM+ series Treasure Island, so the question of Peggy was one of several topics on the table. Until the film arrives, her comments will keep alive the speculation about which version of the story reaches the screen, and whether the woman who waited decades for a dance gets a larger role in what follows.

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