Previously on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., the season 5 finale saw Phil Coulson sacrifice his life by refusing to take the Centipede Serum that could have saved him and instead gave it to Daisy Johnson to help her defeat Graviton. In the final glimpse we got of him, he was living out the last few weeks of his life with Melinda May on a sunny beach in Tahiti.
But is this really the end of Phil Coulson? A man who’s previously survived death by Loki in The Avengers? That’s what fans have been wondering ever since and though season 6 has long been in production, we haven’t had any news either way about if Coulson will return. Thankfully, then, some new comments from Chloe “Quake” Bennet seem to have given us our answer, as they suggest that we really have seen the last of him.
When talking about where Daisy’s at when season 6 opens, Bennet explained that her character’s gotten over the worst of the grieving process for Coulson when the new run begins. Sounds pretty conclusive, doesn’t it?
“In my mind, she has a bit more of a peace to her. There is obviously the mourning of Coulson, but she’s also been through it all and she is genuinely stronger from it. She is not dealing with things as she has in the past. She has fully accepted her trauma and is moving forward in the most healthy way, for the first time.”
Even if he isn’t set to reappear in front of the camera, Clark Gregg’s still going to be involved with the series behind it. He directed the season 6 premiere, for example, so it’s not like he’s left the production behind completely. And then there’s the fact that we haven’t just got season 6 to look forward to but also a seventh season. Surely Coulson has to return at least sometime in the next two (confirmed) runs, right?
All of our questions will be answered when Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. makes its way back to ABC this summer.