Jed Whedon and Maurissa Tancharoen reveal where we go from here

[Warning: This story contains spoilers for Tuesday's midseason finale of Agents of SHIELD, "What They Become."]

Agents of SHIELD is stepping up to the big leagues in a major way.

Tuesday's midseason finale revealed that Skye (Chloe Bennet) isn't quite human. In fact, she's an Inhuman, which if you're not a comic book fan might sound familiar anyway, because Marvel is making a movie in 2018 centering on the race of beings that were genetically enhanced by the Kree.

It's a big move for SHIELD, which so far has had plenty of Marvel Cinematic Universe tie-ins but will now get to set the stage for a movie, years before it comes out.

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"Anytime we play in the MCU, we have to go through a process of clearing ideas," executive producer Jed Whedon tells The Hollywood Reporter. "This was a situation where we were allowed to explore this on our own."

Adds Whedon's wife and fellow executive producer Maurissa Tancharoen, "It's a territory that we've had our sights on since the beginning of the series."

In a chat with THR, the showrunners also talk about new characters, Agent Carter and where SHIELD is headed in 2015.

What was the toughest part about getting this episode right?

Tancharoen: We're revealing a bunch of huge things in our mythology. It's something we've been building since the beginning of the show. We're very excited that we're finally revealing that Skye is Daisy Johnson. We're also excited that we are the first to sort of dive into this new territory in the Marvel universe. That's first.

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How did it come about that you got to introduce the Inhumans?

Whedon: Everything with Marvel is a large process. There are a lot of people in the mix and a lot of properties, and obviously there are huge films that have been announced and scripts that have been announced. Anytime we play in the MCU, we have to go through a process of clearing ideas. This was a situation where we were allowed to explore this on our own.

Tancharoen: It's a territory that we've had our sights on since the beginning of the series.

What is happening next in the SHIELD world?

Tancharoen: With us opening up this new territory, we hope there is an abundance of places and characters to discover.

Whedon: We've stepped into a new world, so we get to answer some questions and discover some new mysteries, seeing how our team is affected by 2014.

We're gearing up for Agent Carter. Will that affect where we go next in SHIELD?

Whedon: It's all one universe. But they are separate shows. While there will be some connections, we have to do this on our own. She's been on our show a little bit, and we've gotten a little sense of her. While you feel a connection, they are not directly related.

Email: Aaron.Couch@THR.com

Twitter: @AaronCouch