From the moment the series was announced in the spring of 2019, it was obvious that Marvel Studios’ Hawkeye was going to draw a lot of inspiration from the comic run by Matt Fraction and David Aja. The promotional material for the show, right down to its title card, has done nothing but point to the live-action Disney+ show borrowing heavily from the vibe and aesthetic the creative duo pioneered in 2012. Yet, in a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the series head writer Jonathan Igla revealed that the pages of Marvel comics weren’t the only place he found inspiration when bringing Hawkeye to life.
It would seem all those wonderfully cheesy Hallmark Christmas movies played a role in the writing process as well. Igla spoke with The Hollywood Reporter about watching plenty of the made-for-tv films with Elise Climent, his partner in both life and writing to find inspiration on bringing the Christmas spirit to life in the series:
I couldn’t say they did not inform the Christmas of the show, a little bit. In the same way that those movies are comforting, I was reading those [Hawkeye] comics so many times. There was something that was comforting and relaxing about it. To turn off the stress of the day and try to disconnect from work.
Jonathan Igla
When it comes to stories set around the holidays, there’s no better place to look than the Hallmark Channel. The network pumps out numerous new Christmas-themed projects every year, all of which are laced with the feel-good energy of the season. It’s not a bad thing to hear that the team behind Hawkeye found themselves drawing from the comforting, cozy nature of movies like A Very Merry Mix-Up and Coming Home for Christmas. It’s a bit of a contrast to the influences highlighted by director Rhys Thomas included, such as Die Hard, Home Alone, and even Gremlins. It shows just how many corners of Christmas films are out there.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
