THE AVENGERS: Concept Artist Andy Park On How Bryan Hitch Inspired Hawkeye's Look

Ahead of the release of Marvel's The Avengers on DVD and Blu-ray, concept artist Andy Park talks about the design of Hawkeye's costume in the superhero ensemble and unveils some of his stunning concept art from the movie.

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By Josh Wilding - 9/21/2012
Despite a brief cameo in THOR, Hawkeye was the only Avenger not to have been shown in full costume before Joss Whedon's superhero ensemble. That meant it was up to concept artist Andy Park to design his look for the big screen, although it was clear to fans that it was based on the costume designed by Bryan Hitch for The Ultimates. Talking to Marvel.com, Park had this to say about creating the right look for Jeremy Renner's Clint Barton. More of his comments can be found by clicking on the link at the bottom of the page.

On Creating Hawkeye's Costume For Marvel's The Avengers:

Hawkeye was one character where it wasn’t given to me from the get go. Charlie [Wen], Ryan [Meinerding] and I tackled it and we spent a week or two coming up with designs for Hawkeye, but we did know that it wasn’t going to be purple. We knew it would be more practical and not so super hero-like. Initially, they liked a version that Ryan did and from there I took over to expand on it, and kind of came up with the look for Hawkeye.


On Incorporating The Arrows Into The Design Of The Costume:

We were doing initial designs that had arrows and the quiver as well. Those designs ultimately went to the art department and from there, they did lots of different versions for what the quiver and bow would look like, so we were mainly in charge of dealing with the costume. It was basically the nooks and crannies of where the pouches went and other design elements.


On Being Influenced By Bryan Hitch's Costume Design In The Ultimates:

Yeah, definitely. I think because of him, a lot of these Marvel films got their inspiration. I think a lot of it started from him. Bryan Hitch’s artwork in the Ultimates makes the comics come alive, and it’s not only tights and costumes. The costumes actually work. Hawkeye’s costume is heavily influenced by Bryan’s work. In the film, I don’t believe Hawkeye ever wears his iconic suit until he is freed from Loki’s mind spell. Before that, he wears something similar, but it’s still a sleeveless, casual soldier suit. The costume he wears at the end is when he is Hawkeye. Before that, he was a S.H.I.E.L.D. soldier influenced by a maniacal, evil guy.











Marvel Studios presents in association with Paramount Pictures Marvel’s The Avengers--the super hero team up of a lifetime, featuring iconic Marvel super heroes Iron Man, the Incredible Hulk, Thor, Captain America, Hawkeye and Black Widow. When an unexpected enemy emerges that threatens global safety and security, Nick Fury, Director of the international peacekeeping agency known as S.H.I.E.L.D., finds himself in need of a team to pull the world back from the brink of disaster. Spanning the globe, a daring recruitment effort begins.

STARRING:

Chris Evans as Steve Rogers/Captain America
Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark/Iron Man
Chris Hemsworth as Thor
Jeremy Renner as Clint Barton/Hawkeye
Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Ramanoff/Black Widow
Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner/Hulk
Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury
Clark Gregg as Agent Coulson
Cobie Smulders as Maria Hill
Tom Hiddleston as Loki

RELEASE DATE: September 17th, 2012 (UK) September 25th, 2012 (US)


Source: Marvel.com
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48 Comments
teabag - 9/21/2012, 1:40 PM
Shit suit :D
kackbratze - 9/21/2012, 1:51 PM
Lol teabag...
Boogie138 - 9/21/2012, 1:57 PM
@teabag: lol

how come we don't have as many gripes about a maskless hawkeye? i dug his movie duds, but i don't ever really remember people going off like peeps had for wolvie since X1
luckylu - 9/21/2012, 1:57 PM
hated hawkeyes costume. should have given him a mask or look a little closer to his 616 counterpart. never should have made him a shield agent. his 616 origin is too badass to change it.
GoILL - 9/21/2012, 2:07 PM
@MrEko

LOL, that shit would've been hilarious.
teabag - 9/21/2012, 2:09 PM
Boogie@ Im one of the guys who wanted a lil more 616 in the costume :)
teabag - 9/21/2012, 2:13 PM
MrEko@ lmao..but then i guess the same could be said if i saw this..




But they made it work on film

i would of like a mixture of the one they used with this one..




Just make it practicly black but with a dark purple shimmer in certain lights :)
INFO - 9/21/2012, 2:22 PM
Hawkeye's costume from the comics earth 616 would look cheesy on the silver screen.
NillaSoul - 9/21/2012, 2:22 PM
At least Black Widow had her symbol on her belt to sort of identifier her. This rendition of Hawkeye could be anyone..."Black bolt, Ebony shaft, Arrowman, etc. A hero should be known at a glance IMO.
JorLBola - 9/21/2012, 2:27 PM
It was cool but would have been perfect with more purple(not that tone burgundy opaque) and not only on the chest
Spidex3000 - 9/21/2012, 2:28 PM
At the end of the day, what's classic doesn't always work, in this case, it wouldn't have worked. It made way more sense to have him as an agent of shield, especially to avoid having to tell another back story.
ArmoredAsgardian - 9/21/2012, 2:29 PM
While I wouldn't have wanted Hawkeye to look like @MrEko's pic, I would've wished they had a more "super hero" feel to his suit. Captain America can have a full-blown American flag as an outfit but a little purple on Hawkeye's would be stupid?
ArmoredAsgardian - 9/21/2012, 2:31 PM
@Tea, now that would've been better. Was just about to post that pic actually.
KelvTwelve - 9/21/2012, 2:34 PM
@Tea, I swear he's wearing a sportsbra.
teabag - 9/21/2012, 2:35 PM
Its easy to say a costume would look cheesy but with the right design wotk it can work on film.....if you create a descent balance between classic look and original redesign thr quality of the movie will have you beleive in the costume ;)
teabag - 9/21/2012, 2:37 PM
Kelv@ lol hey superheroes have moobs too ;)

Asgardian@ exactly :)
Fogs - 9/21/2012, 2:49 PM
Loved the suit. The 616 would've been ridiculous. And he's a shield agent, not a superhero (or supercrook as he started in 616).
manofmidgard - 9/21/2012, 2:56 PM
that suit wasn't INSPIRED by anything, it was the most UNinspired costume of the movie. as bad as the first x-men movie costumes. they talkin about he became hawkeye at the end and wore his costume - yeeeeah right. i never even noticed a costume change either time i saw the movie. not much of a change really, still lame. hope in future films he gets his "real" hawkeye costume complete with chainmail, tunic, and mask, not to mention PURPLE. they did great on everybody else and the movie was amazing but they screwed the pooch on hawkeye's costume. renner was great as hawkeye. i don't blame him. comic book movies have got to stop being ashamed of the source material and actually give superheroes superhero costumes. okay, the spadex has got to go, but thats just because noone wants to see a grown-@ss man wearing spandex under ANY circumstances. doesnt mean the designs and colors hafta go. superheroes are supposed to be living icons that the public can look up to, not people that just dissapear into the crowd cuz they blend in with every other person. hawkeye in the comics has always looked up to cap, so its not a stretch that he would want a costume that makes him stand out too. sheesh, c'mon marvel. even dc got that right with batman superman and even green lantern (for all its other faults). i wont mention the wb crapfests where they didnt get it right; smallville, arrow
MARVELPSYCHO79 - 9/21/2012, 2:58 PM
@teabag I think that Coipel art you posted of Hawkeye would look great.That suit looks badass and could work.I hate that Marvel didn't try to make Hawkeye look like he does in the 616.I think a very dark purple would be best for the costume.
manofmidgard - 9/21/2012, 2:58 PM
maybe thor can hook cap and hawk up with some asgardian chainmail armor, or stark can whip up something lightweight and sleek for them =)
Fogs - 9/21/2012, 3:05 PM
@manofmidgard - but he's not a superhero in the cinematic universe. He's a shield agent. Giving some excuse for him to use the 616 or similar suit would sound cheap as hell.
KrazyForKomix - 9/21/2012, 3:09 PM
@Spidex3000
In the end actually, Caps classic look worked perfectly. IronMan was dead on (especially given that they give him a new costume every other issue); Thor's was off quite a bit, but at least matched the spirit of Kirby's design. Natasha's was easy to replicate. The only one that failed to use the source material was Hawkeye. And he failed so generically, too. He could STILL have taken the easy origin route you site, but honored the classic look of the comics a lot more, as the others did so successfully.
Teabag assessment (with the included pic) was absolutely right.
breakUbatman - 9/21/2012, 3:10 PM
I actually wish they had given Cap a more functional costume like Hawkeye, as in kept the color scheme but used more hardier materials.
KrazyForKomix - 9/21/2012, 3:11 PM
@manofmidgard
um . . . well said. Wish I'd said it earlier . . .
Spidex3000 - 9/21/2012, 3:29 PM
@KrazyForKomix

If the source material was the ultimate universe... and Thor is heavily inspired by Ultimate Universe as well. Cap's first costume during ww2 w/ the helmet, Ultimate inspired. Plus, the way the script was, Black Widow and Hawkeye are supposed to be the grounded characters, that's why Hawkeye doesn't have

I thought that having him be evil at the start was a good enough nod to the comic books. plus, whenever we get a shield movie, they will touch on the original backstory, who's to say that he wasn't in the circus before.

Either way it goes, from a functional stand point and story standpoint, I don't see any reason why hawkeye would need his original costume. Plus, he's never even referred to as hawkeye, the closest we get is "Hawk"
Chewtoy - 9/21/2012, 3:30 PM
Calling the film's Hawkeye costume "iconic" suggests the artist doesn't know the meaning of the word. It couldn't be more generic.
FOOM - 9/21/2012, 3:38 PM
Love Hawkeye, he was OK in the film, but his film look was a piece of sh*t.
chuckg313 - 9/21/2012, 3:40 PM
@breakUbatman...im with you on that the pajamas look was weak...but i think they went for the best look in action for the screen....
siggisuperman - 9/21/2012, 3:52 PM
I wanna see him at least wear the glasses or use his ultimate mask for a stealth mission
LordHuck - 9/21/2012, 4:14 PM
Love it, glad they lost the old 616 clown suit. Currently Hawkeye is looking really good in his new movie inspired 616 duds.
EarOne - 9/21/2012, 4:18 PM
NO MASK. NO overwhelmingly PURPLE color motif.
however...i DO expect him to wear the SHADES..it's supposed to ENHANCE his already super SHARP eyes. they even have him wear em in some promo stills, so i don't get why they end up NOT have him wear it in the movie.

i think, LOGICALLY, since he's not a SUPER guy, he should NEED the telescopic shades to aim the long and moving targets. in the movie, his incredible ability makes him as if he's another super avenger.
FrankieDedo - 9/21/2012, 4:27 PM
LOL, it's the same from ultimates, only with shield logo and purple arrow!
However, i liked how hawkeye in the movie was possessed by loki and how it winked to hawkeye's villain past :)
superotherside - 9/21/2012, 4:46 PM
Great work.
pointman - 9/21/2012, 4:53 PM
that suit wasn't INSPIRED by anything, it was the most UNinspired costume of the movie. as bad as the first x-men movie costumes. they talkin about he became hawkeye at the end and wore his costume - yeeeeah right. i never even noticed a costume change either time i saw the movie. not much of a change really, still lame. hope in future films he gets his "real" hawkeye costume complete with chainmail, tunic, and mask, not to mention PURPLE. they did great on everybody else and the movie was amazing but they screwed the pooch on hawkeye's costume. renner was great as hawkeye. i don't blame him. comic book movies have got to stop being ashamed of the source material and actually give superheroes superhero costumes. okay, the spadex has got to go, but thats just because noone wants to see a grown-@ss man wearing spandex under ANY circumstances. doesnt mean the designs and colors hafta go. superheroes are supposed to be living icons that the public can look up to, not people that just dissapear into the crowd cuz they blend in with every other person. hawkeye in the comics has always looked up to cap, so its not a stretch that he would want a costume that makes him stand out too. sheesh, c'mon marvel. even dc got that right with batman superman and even green lantern (for all its other faults). i wont mention the wb crapfests where they didnt get it right; smallville, arrow
Read more at http://www.comicbookmovie.com/fansites/JoshWildingNewsAndReviews/news/?a=67642#AUdBLM6z0jdbIRD8.99
That was very very well said. The initial concept art in most of these films look great, and then they water it down to this mess. The xfilms were a slap in the face at the whole concept. Pretty soon you wont recognize these characters in the book or in the movies. These designers say there were inspired, but the actually either ripped off the whole design or pissed all over it. It is the easiest job in the world for them. Everything has been laid out in front of them (comics) for them to go off of. All they have to do is add some seams and make it look functional. It is a joke.
ironpool007 - 9/21/2012, 5:21 PM
I know a lot of people have issues with it, but I would love to see the mask with the bullsyes that they gave him in Ultimates 3.
OdinsBeard - 9/21/2012, 5:30 PM
pointman@ "Everything has been laid out in front of them (comics) for them to go off of."

but that's what you want right? don't people bitch if it's not exactly like the comic?

i don't understand whats not to like about it.
jimpinto24 - 9/21/2012, 5:33 PM
I liked Hawkeye's outfit in The Avengers. (Even though it would have been cool if Hawkeye wore the mask from the comics)
checkmate3010 - 9/21/2012, 6:29 PM
TBH I think that the Hawkeye costume is pretty uninspired and almost generic. Nothing unique about it at all.

BUT, its not like I really care since the movie is just way too good :/
lokibane2012 - 9/21/2012, 6:42 PM
Hawkeye is lame. Renner's even worse.
SpideyQuad - 9/21/2012, 7:44 PM
I thought Hawkeyes suit was the one thing they dropped the ball on. It didn't have to be balls to the wall 616, but it should've been much closer than it was. Teabags picture is what it should've been. The purples could've been closer to black, and the classic tunic should've been there. The mask could have been amped down or eliminated and I would've been happy, but what was ultimately used (no pun intended) sucked.
SpideyQuad - 9/21/2012, 7:56 PM
Fogs, I can go for what you're saying, but then dump him for the next move in plug in some heroes. Because what you're saying makes him the weak link. Add the vision, Ms. Marvel, Capt. Marvel for that matter along with Henry Pym and Janet. black widow doesn't belong fighting cosmic level villains anyways.

But we know that isn't going to be very happening, dropping either star.
SpideyQuad - 9/21/2012, 8:01 PM
LOL, I sound so “give your base to us” Japanese
mctrinket - 9/21/2012, 8:26 PM
What's wrong with sleeves?
Growler - 9/21/2012, 10:10 PM
@earone: anyone using a longbow wouldn't wear telescopic shades as they'd be more of a hindrance than an asset.
If Hawkeye was to wear shades it'd be more useful if they were polarised to negate any flare etc.
FOOM - 9/21/2012, 11:54 PM
Hawkeye's film character was even more diluted than Wolverine's. Would have been rectified had they gone with Chris Burns. What a wasted opportinuty.
Gromblidor - 9/22/2012, 8:18 AM
Me want cowl. Make it a helmet like Cap's. Hawkeye is a solider for SHIELD, soldiers wear helmets.
Ichaos - 9/22/2012, 7:15 PM
On the "I don’t believe Hawkeye ever wears his iconic suit until he is freed from Loki’s mind spell" Part. Ummm its based on the Ultimate costume which is fine but its NOT the "iconic (I hate that bloody over used word) suit" The Iconic one is the purple with the funky mask that comes to points. Which I agree would be a challenge to pull off on film.

I did like how his arrows worked though it made sense. I always wondered how these archer types grabbed the right arrows. You would think it would be very easy to mistake an exposive arrow for say a giant boxing glove arrow.
Fogs - 9/24/2012, 9:03 AM
@SpideyQuad - About the importance of Hawkeye:

If the second movie is as well written as the first Hawkeye and widow could be dropped, yes. But as characters I understand they had their importance in Avengers. No need for them to be superpowerful. The phrase "these are monsters and magic, nothing we were ever trained for" says a lot to me, it connected with people. My wife for example said they blended the superpowered beings with average people so well exactly because of SHIELD and the two agents.

A room filled with only super-perfect-people is exactly what I fear from a JL movie, for example. It needs to have a really good writing to hold it. Hopefully we'll see it well done some day.

Avengers worked because of the characters even more than the action IMO. Action is great but the characters are awesome and serve as a bonus when they're fighting together, to think of each one's personality, like "oh, now IM is saving caps, that's cool because they couldn't stand each other", or "nice thing they did with banner showing up like tony said, and he saves him in the end, they became buddies after all", or even "holy crap, now widow's gonna fight hawkeye, Loki said he would murder her in the most gruesome way possible".

Little things that make each one of the characters matter.

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