When the third and final story arc on season 4 of Agents of SHIELD began, speculation ran wild as to whether a backdoor had been created for the show runners to bring Grant Ward (Brett Dalton) back into the fold full-time via the framework. If that wasn’t enough fun for fans, the same questions are now being raised about Antoine “Trip” Triplett (B.J. Britt). With season 4 just weeks away from concluding, the SHIELD team is in a race against time and Madame Hydra to free itself from the framework. Executive Producer Jed Whedon was asked if an “avatar” from the framework could transition somehow to the “real world”. His answer seemed to dispel any belief that this is part of the plan going forward.

“Yeah, well, I mean in theory. Our story didn’t [go there.] There are rules for that because thankfully we can do anything.”

While Whedon’s remarks should seemingly put speculation to rest, we have to remember that we were also initially told that Doctor Strange would not introduce the fifth Infinity Stone to the MCU. Whedon wouldn’t be doing the show any favors by tipping his hand in any interviews. So, while it seems as though this news should excite the haters of Ward and upset the fans of “Trip”, one could easily say that this information should be taken with a grain of salt. With SHIELD having a bit of resurgence in the ratings late in the fourth season, Whedon certainly wouldn’t want to spoil anything that is still to come.

With SHIELD’s final arc being in an alternate reality, it wasn’t surprising to see Dalton and Britt brought back to play the roles of Ward and “Trip.” Dalton was a main cast member during the series first four seasons. He started the series as a SHIELD agent but later would reveal himself as a member of Hydra before having his body inhabited by the inhuman, Hive, later in season three. Dalton’s full-time run ended with Hive’s death in the season 3 finale. Britt’s run was much shorter, though he quickly became a fan favorite. Britt debuted in the second half of season 1 during the events that coincided with Captain America: The Winter Soldier and saw SHIELD fall due to Hydra being deeply rooted within the organization. Britt’s recurring run ended during the season 2 mid-season finale when “Trip” was killed by Terrigen mist laced with Diviner metal.

With only a few episodes left in season 4 of Agents of SHIELD, speculation is high that we could see more familiar faces that long-time fans of the show will recognize. Will we see Adrianne Palicki and Nick Blood reprise their roles of Bobbi Morse and Lance Hunter or perhaps some other cameos that haven’t been anticipated? It looks like we’ll have to tune in to find out.

Agents of SHIELD airs Tuesday nights at 10pm Eastern on ABC.

Source: Entertainment Weekly