It would make sense that Marvel is a well-oiled machine when it comes to putting out shows and movies. After all, there are billions of dollars and stake, not to mention a rabid fan base that will vehemently react to anything that’s not up to snuff.
That’s why it’s all the more surprising to learn that the famed Tracksuit Mafia from Hawkeye were allowed to improvise some of their scenes. Aleks Paunovic, who plays Ivan Banionis in the show, spoke with The Illuminerdi about how Marvel surprisingly allowed the baddies to play around.
“Oh my god, we had so much fun with it. The best part of that was Carlos [Navarro] and Tomas, we became really, really great friends. We all became very close from shooting in New York and Atlanta. And so, a lot of improv also. Because we just got to play with each other. We were at the same level. So, there’s a lot of things that were cut off, that to us were just hilarious.”
Turns out some of the things they came up with on the spot actually stayed in the show, according to Paunovic.
“Because they just let us go. They just let us off the leash and some of the stuff that you see in the show is improv, too. Just because we had a great chemistry. And they allowed us to kind of do our thing, which is a testament to Marvel and letting us kind of go off and be the track suit mafia.”
Apparently even though he was a part of the show Marvel’s storied secrecy worked in his favor, because he said he got to experience the show as a fan since there were scenes he had no idea about.
“Yeah, there was a few scenes. I thought that show was so fun. And it is so interesting because Hawkeye was, Marvel’s very secretive. So, we never got scripts. We only showed up with our sides for that day and then learning the lines and handing in our sides. So, we never really got the full script. So, I had a viewing party at my house and I was watching a TV show that I literally had no idea what was going on. Just like everyone else, which was really fun to be a part of.”
Hawkeye is currently available for streaming on Disney Plus.
