'Avengers 4' Fan Art Imagines What Hawkeye Could Look Like as Ronin

There's been one aspect of Avengers 4 that Marvel Cinematic Universe have been waiting for: the return of Jeremy Renner's Hawkeye. After a much-publicized absence from Avengers: Infinity War, Hawkeye will be returning to help the original Avengers after Thanos' infamous "Snap" - but it may not be the Hawkeye that we know and love.

Even months before Avengers: Infinity War hit theaters, we were getting hints that Renner's Clint Barton would be going through something of an evolution for Avengers 4. Renner started sporting a mohawk haircut, and rumors were swirling that he was swapping out his Hawkeye persona for the darker, edgier, "Ronin" persona we once saw in the comics. Now one Marvel fan is giving us some artwork that imagines what the Marvel Cinematic Universe version of Ronin would look like:

(Image Credit: v2vDesigns)

This image depicts Renner as less of the Marvel Comics version of Ronin, and more of an Arrow-style "Dark Archer" type. The gauntlets and boots are a pretty faithful adaptation of the Ronin comics costume, as is the overall color scheme. However, the hood and mask are different from the black mask Ronin wore in the comics - but the biggest change is probably the bow. The point of "Ronin" was pretty much for Clint Barton to explore a different sort of persona than Hawkeye - which includes using a different sort of weaponry. "Ronin" ditched the bow and arrow, instead using a katana sword and nunchucks as his primary weapons of choice.

So far, Jeremy Renner has been playing things very coy, posting all kinds of teaser photos of himself with his new (Ronin?) haircut - while never really revealing anything substantial about his storyline in Avengers 4, or where the Infinity War sequel finds Hawkeye, at the start. Set photos and videos have revealed hints of Renner sporting a Ronin costume very similar to the comics, while additional rumors have led to speculation that "The Snap" killed Clint Barton's family, leading to suffering the kind of spiral that creates the dark, violent, Ronin persona. It would make sense, as it seems clearer and clearer that Avengers: Infinity War saw the original Avengers team survive The Snap, just to have Avengers 4 bring their story full circle, with the heroes having to work out their respective and shared issues, which have been building ever since the first Avengers movie. For Clint Barton, that story arc could involve Hawkeye finding his way back into the light of being a hero, after getting so lost in the darkness of "Ronin." Naturally, friends like Scarlet Johansson's Black Widow would be instrumental in helping that recovery happen.

Are you ready for the MCU version of Ronin in Avengers 4? Let us know in the comments!

Avengers: Infinity War is now available as a digital download and on Blu-ray and DVD. Upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe movies include Captain Marvel on March 8, 2019, Avengers 4 on May 3, 2019, and Spider-Man: Far From Home on July 5th, 2019.