The “Marvel One-Shots” both star Gregg as Phil Coulson, offering up two self-contained stories about the day in the life of a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent.
“Making shorts is something we’ve been talking about for some time,” recalls “Marvel One-Shot” Co-Producer Brad Winderbaum. “It’s a fun way to experiment with new characters and ideas, but more importantly it’s a way for us to expand the Marvel Cinematic Universe and tell stories that live outside the plot of our features.”
For the creative teams behind both shorts, the films’ producers went all-out to assemble a group that would bring Agent Coulson’s adventures to life in style.
“They were directed by the great Leythum, whose initial pitch was very inspiring and immediately made us confident in his vision,” reveals Winderbaum. “They were produced by the Ebeling Group who collected an incredibly talented crew of people to pull these off, including Director of Photography David Myrick and Production Designer David Courtemarche. We were also fortunate to have the films scored by the world renowned DJ Paul Oakenfold. And both shorts were written by the awesome Eric Pearson, who did a great job capturing the wit and humor we enjoy from Coulson in the features.”
In the timeline of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Winderbaum lays out roughly where each of the “Marvel One-Shots” falls:
“‘A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Thor’s Hammer…’ picks up after Agent Coulson leaves Tony Stark’s lab in Malibu during ‘Iron Man 2,’ and occurs before he arrives solo at the crater site in ‘Thor.’ ‘The Consultant’ takes place sometime after the plots of ‘Iron Man 2,’ ‘Thor,’ and ‘The Incredible Hulk,’ but before ‘Marvel’s The Avengers.’”
These films offer the latest expansion of the Marvel Cinematic Universe outside of the films, something that Winderbaum and his team look to continue into the future.
“Whether it’s our tie-in comics like IRON MAN: PUBLIC IDENTITY and CAPTAIN AMERICA: FIRST VENGEANCE, the ‘Marvel One-Shots,’ or online experiences like StarkExpo or JoinSHIELD, if it enriches the films for our fans, then supporting the ongoing story of the MCU is something we always want to do. If these first two One-Shots are well received, we will absolutely make more of them!”
