Disney+'s Hawkeye is the least-watched live-action Marvel Cinematic Universe show, and there are several reasons why it's not getting more viewers.
Warning: SPOILERS for Hawkeye episode 3.
Disney+'s Hawkeye is the least-watched live-action Marvel Cinematic Universe show, and there are several reasons why that's the case. In Hawkeye, Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner) just wants to have a relaxing holiday with his kids in New York City; however, Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld) swiftly ends all hope of that. After Bishop wears Hawkeye's old Ronin outfit while fighting off criminals, Barton's former enemies come after her. So now, Hawkeye needs to train Bishop to be a hero, take down his former foes, and still make it home in time to spend Christmas with his family. In addition to that, a new villain may bring an Avengers-level threat, according to the Hawkeye trailers.
Hawkeye's debut wasn't exactly what Disney wanted. The series, which premiered in November and reportedly cost $25 million per episode, earned the lowest viewership of Disney's live-action MCU shows. According to numbers from Samba TV, 1.5 million households tuned in to the Hawkeye premiere during its first five days, and 1.3 million households watched the show's second episode. Notably, 2.5 million households tuned into Loki for its first five days, while Falcon and the Winter Soldier received 1.8 million households in its first three days. In addition, WandaVision earned 1.6 million households in its first three days.
There are several reasons to blame for Hawkeye's viewership. First and foremost, Hawkeye is on a smaller scale than other MCU shows, telling a more intimate story about Hawkeye facing his past. Because it's a smaller story, Hawkeye has a smaller impact on the MCU. Additionally, viewers may have superhero fatigue with an onslaught of Marvel content coming in 2021 and beyond. And when everything comes down to it, Hawkeye was never the most popular Avenger for a solo project.
In Hawkeye, Clint Barton's main problem is getting home to his kids for the holidays. Yes, he's essentially passing on the torch to the next generation of heroes in Kate Bishop, but he genuinely just wants to get home to watch movie marathons and decorate the tree. Thus, the threats he faces in the series are relatively small compared to previous Avengers conflicts. For instance, in Avengers: Endgame, Barton joined in the fight against Thanos (Josh Brolin) with the universe's fate hanging in the balance. However, in Hawkeye episode 2, one of Barton's missions is getting his old Ronin costume back from a LARP event in New York City. He even seems to recognize the hilarity of the situation. "And I fought Thanos," Barton says with a sigh at the LARP outing.
Hawkeye is simply a smaller story than the usual Marvel fare. In WandaVision, Marvel took fans on a kooky journey through the sitcoms of yesteryear, and the mysterious tale culminates in a twist involving Elizabeth Olsen's Scarlet Witch. Then, Loki was a time-traveling romp, allowing Marvel to explore past events from a different perspective. On the other hand, Hawkeye is mainly about a dad trying to get home for Christmas and Clint Barton dealing with his past. In the grand scheme of Marvel content, it's not as big of a deal. And a smaller story could lead to smaller viewership.
Disney+'s Marvel shows are all about bringing a cohesive experience across the MCU. While each story is self-contained to a degree, they've each had a significant impact on the MCU. Falcon and the Winter Soldier dealt with the fallout from Thanos' deadly snap in Endgame. WandaVision delivered a sitcom mystery that allowed Scarlet Witch to embrace her powers, and Loki brought the Multiverse and Kang the Conqueror to the MCU. With the Multiverse appearing in the upcoming Spider-Man: No Way Home and Elizabeth Olsen's Scarlet Witch set to show off her new powers in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, the first Disney+ shows are almost required viewing for Marvel fans.
Then, there's Hawkeye. While the series may have far-reaching implications in the MCU, it doesn't present itself that way. Like Hawkeye himself, it's more low-key. As a result, its impact on the MCU may not become fully apparent until the series concludes. And since the series doesn't give fans urgency to watch it, they will likely just check it out at their leisure or binge the series once it's completely released. Unfortunately, that may hurt its initial viewing numbers.
When WandaVision debuted, fans were starving for Marvel content. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, several MCU projects were rescheduled and pushed back before the series premiered. So when WandaVision finally made its way to Disney+ in January 2021, the MCU fandom went wild, hanging on to every moment of the series and blowing theories out of proportion. However, things have changed since then.
Following WandaVision, Disney released four other Marvel shows and multiple movies. Even before the slew of Marvel shows, fans and critics speculated that mainstream entertainment was suffering from superhero overload. Hawkeye also doesn't have the strongest lead-in. What If...?, the series that preceded Hawkeye's release, scored the lowest ratings and most critical reviews of Marvel's shows. Because of those factors, Hawkeye's ratings may suffer.
In Hawkeye episode 2, Kate Bishop tells Clint Barton that he's her favorite Avenger. He responds by saying, "Are you okay?" So even Hawkeye himself knows he's not the most popular Avenger. Hawkeye doesn't truly have superpowers, unlike Chris Hemsworth's Thor or Chris Evans' Captain America. Instead, he's a relatively normal person who shoots arrows well. In the series, he even gets passed up on the street by a kid looking to meet a superhero. Kate Bishop sums up the lack of popularity as a "branding problem." Beyond that, Hawkeye received backlash after Endgame from fans thinking he should've died instead of Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson).
Despite Hawkeye's lack of popularity, the series deserves more viewers. Though the story is smaller than other MCU projects, Hawkeye is critically praised and comes complete with a stacked cast and several MCU Easter eggs. On the positive side for Marvel, the series will continue to live on Disney+, so fans will likely find it eventually, regardless of its initial viewership. And Hawkeye has been highly pirated, which may skew its viewing numbers lower. When it comes down to it, as Kate Bishop says in Hawkeye, the series may simply suffer from a branding problem.
Hawkeye releases new episodes Wednesdays on Disney+.
