Looks like Joss Whedon has recruited two more agents to come on board with ‘S.H.I.E.L.D.’ British actors Elizabeth Henstridge and Iain De Caestecker have signed on to portray S.H.I.E.L.D. agents Gemma Simmons and Leo Fitz for this highly anticipated ABC pilot.
Henstridge is relatively unknown here in the US but has appeared on the series ‘Hollyoaks.’ De Caestecker, on the other hand, may be familiar as he starred as Paul in the highly series ‘The Fades’ which aired on BBC America. He also earned a Best Actor nod at this year’s Scottish BAFTAs for his role as young James Harriot in the film of the same title.
According to the casting breakdown for their roles, Henstridge and De Caestecker are collectively called ‘Fitz-Simmons’ and “came through training together and still choose to spend most of their time in each other’s company. Their sibling-like relationship is reinforced by their shared nerd tendencies – she deals with biology and chemistry, he’s a whiz at the technical side of weaponry.” For a casting sheet, these roles were accurately described as Henstridge’s character, Simmons, is officially described as a science whiz while De Caestecker’s character, Fitz, will be a technology guru. The two characters, who are masters at what they do, will have a lot of scenes together butting heads and will most likely engage in Whedon’s trademark banter that so was wickedly enjoyable on ‘Buffy’ and ‘Angel.’
Henstridge and De Caestecker will be joining Ming Na Wen who will be playing the role of Agent Melinda May, a top-notch pilot and weapons expert who’s slightly damaged by her combat experiences, and Clark Gregg, who will be reprising his role as Agent Phil Coulson from the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
‘S.H.I.E.L.D.’ is coming along quite quickly and with filming expected to take place in a couple months, expect more casting announcement to trickle in soon. If we’re fortunate, Whedon won’t be too busy with ‘Avengers 2’ and may even be able to direct this pilot if his schedule permits. Let’s all keep our fingers crossed!
Keep checking back at ScienceFiciton.com as we’ll keep you updated as more information about ‘S.H.I.E.L.D.’ comes in!
Source: THR
