Secret Invasion’s Cobie Smulders Opens Up About Filming “Emotional” Premiere Ending

WARNING: This article contains major spoilers for Marvel’s Secret Invasion premiere! The first episode of Marvel Studios’ latest series, Secret Invasion, ended in shocking fashion for fans around the world. Maria Hill, who has been something of a mainstay for the franchise since 2012’s The Avengers, met her fate at the hands of a Skrull that was impersonating Nick Fury. Unless there are some crazy multiverse shenanigans ahead in the future, Maria Hill is gone, and her death was a big surprise for everyone watching.

Cobie Smulders, who plays Maria Hill, sat down with EW after the debut of Secret Invasion to talk about the shocking death of her character. Smulders opened up about filming the episode’s final scene.

“It was emotional, it was scary. I was lucky enough that we were in this one location over the course of a couple of days shooting the entire sequence, so we got everything, the explosions, the running, the chasing, the Skrulls morphing, and all of that already. It was one of the last things that I did,” Smulders explained.

“I really loved my time working with Sam, I really enjoyed every moment that I have been able to play Maria, so I was sad, but I’m also just very grateful,” she continued. “When I signed on to do this 10 years ago, I didn’t even think I got it after the audition. ‘Well, that was fun. I didn’t embarrass myself, but I definitely didn’t get it,’ I remember saying to my husband. So it’s just really been an embarrassment of riches to be able to do all these jobs, and to go from film to TV to animated form. It’s really been a magical journey. It was sort of a sad way to go, but I’m grateful for the time that I have had.”

Will Maria Hill Return to the MCU?

The Maria Hill we’ve seen in the MCU this entire time is gone, thanks to Gravik and his team of Skrulls. That said, stranger things have happened in the long-running Marvel franchise, so Maria could possibly return at some point.

The MCU has introduced a version of the multiverse, so another version of Maria Hill could potentially appear. There’s also the timeline to consider. Rumors have indicated that Smulders will take part in . That seems like a stretch given what we’ve seen in Secret Invasion, but is there a chance The Marvels (or at least part of it) takes place before the show?

Maria Hill on Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur

In addition to playing Maria Hill in live-action projects, Smulders has been voicing her on Disney Channel’s Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur. That role will continue, as Smulders just recently recorded new episodes of the series.

“I mean, I do not make those decisions,” Smulders told EW when asked about a Maria Hill comeback. “I’m still working on Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur animated show — I literally recorded an episode today. So I have no idea how or when she’s going to come back around to me, but I’m always welcoming the call.

The MCU’s top superspy Nick Fury is back in Secret Invasion, the limited series premiering June 21st on Disney+. Samuel L. Jackson returns in the new Marvel Studios series, showcasing Fury’s attempt to get to the bottom of a Skrull invasion that goes all the way to the most powerful positions in various governments and organizations on the planet. In Secret Invasion, Fury teams with allies Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders), Everett Ross (Martin Freeman), and Talos (Ben Mendelsohn), while James Rhodes AKA War Machine will appear in a mysterious capacity. Other newcomers to the Marvel Cinematic Universe include Emilia Clarke, Olivia Colman, and Kingsley Ben-Adir.