Hawkeye's penultimate episode rocks fans with shocking twist
The clock is ticking as Clint Barton/Hawkeye still tries to make it home to his family – but the appearance of a malicious enemy in the penultimate episode of Marvel's Hawkeye has made things more complicated.
Hawkeye's latest episode Ronin opens up a larger can of worms that will make the hero's journey home much more tricky.
Throughout the series, the skilled archer has continuously mentioned "the big guy," whom he has tried to steer clear of since his past sins have come back to bite him.
The identity of this unnamed person has been a tight-lipped secret, but fans still made guesses as to who this big baddie could be.
Well, the villain has finally been unveiled, but in the most unexpected way.
All the while, Clint's family has been trying their best to be patient as he continues to atone for his past misdeeds.
Heroes and villains collide as the Marvel Cinematic Universe starts to connect
As if Hawkeye doesn't already have a lot on his plate, the show's villain has now made his debut. And the shock of it all has fans reeling.
Vincent D'Onofrio, who portrayed the notorious criminal lord Kingpin on the Netflix series Daredevil, made a very brief cameo in the last few seconds of Hawkeye's fifth episode.
It turns out that Kingpin was the enemy Maya Hawke was working for all along!
But even more shocking was the discovery that it was Kingpin who hired the Black Widow Yelena Belova to kill Clint, and that Kate Bishop's mother Eleanor is also working with him.
While this is a huge bomb, fans know that Kingpin is an important Marvel villain who has also crossed paths with Spider-Man in comics and previous films.
While fans have long speculated that Kingpin was the villain Hawkeye was trying to avoid all along, it's suspiciously coincidental that the revelation of his identity coincides with Spider-Man: No Way Home's debut – the new Spider-Man film which will be released in theaters this weekend.
Early reviews have already teased how crazy and chaotic the MCU will get in the upcoming Spidey flick.
Does this episode confirm that the brilliant foe could also make an appearance in No Way Home?
And what does this mean for Hawkeye - who has seemingly hinted several times throughout the series that he's crossed paths with the no-good crime lord?
Hopefully next week, all will be revealed. The series' final episode will air on Wednesday.
Hawkeye is now streaming on Disney+.
Cover photo: imago/Everett Collection