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The Marvel Cinematic Universe’s sixth phase is almost complete, and The Multiverse Saga will be finished in the blink of an eye. With that in mind, fans have had their sights on what comes next. Most of the post-Secret Wars announcements have focused on movies. So far, we know we’ll finally get Ghost Rider, the MCU’s new X-Men, and Black Panther 3. Now, a “Marvel TV insider” has shared that the first TV show fans can expect in 2028 is an espionage thriller called Zodiac.
The live-action Marvel TV show Zodiac has a multi-season plan with a cheaper budget, ensuring longevity. This continues the franchise’s push for multi-season yearly releases, such as Daredevil: Born Again and Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man. The upcoming show will be a good jumping-on point for MCU newcomers. The announcement said familiar Marvel characters and actors could appear, though the insider didn’t specify who. However, Marvel has remained tight-lipped and hasn’t commented on the insider’s report.
That said, if the report is true, there’s good reason to believe Zodiac could be a sequel to the quasi-MCU TV show Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., which still lacks an explicit confirmation of canonization or de-canonization. Based on everything we know so far, plus a few peculiarities from the past few years, five major hints stand out that could confirm a story connected to Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
The most obvious hint that Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. connects to Zodiac is the organization’s eagle symbol in the title. When Brad Winderbaum announced Zodiac at the Marvel TV panel at NYCC 2026, he remained tight-lipped about the story. However, he said, “For anyone who knows the comics, if you look closely at this title design, you’ll see a few clues about where we’re going.” The two noticeable parts of the logo are the “o,” which seems to be the Great Wheel from Secret Warriors, and the “a,” which is the S.H.I.E.L.D. symbol.
To make matters more suspicious, actor Clark Gregg, who played Agent Coulson in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., shared the show’s logo on his Instagram story. Gregg isn’t exactly known for sharing MCU news. As such, it seems suspicious that he would choose to share the Zodiac title. Gregg has to be involved in some way.
If Gregg is involved in Zodiac, it would make the most sense that it has connections to Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. That’s what fans already know him for. It doesn’t make sense for them to bring him in on a completely unrelated series.
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The Great Wheel Connects To S.H.I.E.L.D. In The Comics
The Great Wheel symbol in the Zodiac title further suggests that the upcoming series connects to Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., though it could suggest a prequel instead of a sequel. A time-traveling Leonardo da Vinci, who was a member of the Brotherhood of the S.H.I.E.L.D., assembled the Great Wheel in 1961. He brought together 12 of the best spies and assigned each one a zodiac sign.
Aside from da Vinci’s association with S.H.I.E.L.D., members also participated in the council, including Nick Fury. Interestingly, Hydra members also joined the Great Wheel. Eventually, the organization broke apart. The historical leader also introduced S.H.I.E.L.D.’s greatest technology, Life-Model Decoy, which is mentioned in The Avengers and shown in the ABC TV show.
If The MCU is actually bringing The Great Wheel to the screen, they will either need to modernize it as a sequel to Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. or make Zodiac a prequel. Modernizing the organization makes more sense for two reasons. Firstly, they already de-aged Samuel L. Jackson, which created an uncanny valley effect. Secondly, Agent Coulson wouldn’t be alive in 1961, so they would be wasting their best asset.
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THE MCU Sneakily Added Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. to Nick Fury’s Official Bio Three Years Ago
Marvel has biographies for all its MCU characters on its website. They’ve kept them updated as new movies have been released, adding more information. Three years ago, right before Secret Invasion, Marvel quietly added events from Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season 1 to Nick Fury’s biography.
They described him working with Agent Coulson to take down the Hydra turncoat John Garrett. The fact that Marvel’s bio now features these events but not other non-MCU on-screen appearances suggests that Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is officially MCU. This is the basic requirement for Zodiac to be a sequel. They can’t make a Marvel Cinematic Universe sequel to a non-MCU TV show. Their change three years ago is even more evidence that Zodiac could be connected to Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Marvel has been planning MCU TV shows and movies for years, even if we, the public, haven’t always known what characters and stories come next. Even though they’ve made changes to The Avengers Phase 6, I’m inclined to believe they would’ve known, at least since the release of Secret Invasion, if an Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.–related show is on the way. If it had been changed more recently, I’d have expected a S.H.I.E.L.D. project in Phase Seven instead.
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The MCU Never Formally Decanonized Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Marvel has never been shy about decanonizing stories previously connected to the Sacred Timeline. They removed many, many tie-in comics as well as the Thanos origin story book. On the TV side, they publicly removed Runaways, Helstrom, and Cloak & Dagger from canon. However, two shows have been in limbo: Agent Carter and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Technically, in The Story of Marvel Studios: The Making of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is called its own separate thing. However, folks in charge have gone to great lengths to leave things ambiguous. Clark Gregg has maintained his position that Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is still MCU canon (via CBR). Kevin Feige suggests that the show exists as part of the wider Marvel universe but isn’t part of the Sacred Timeline.
Meanwhile, Marvel TV boss Brad Winderbaum told ScreenRant that he’s excited to figure out how to align the ABC shows Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Agent Carter with the MCU canon. The fact that neither has never been officially decanonized suggests Winderbaum might have bigger plans for it. Zodiac could be a prequel or sequel that officially ties Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. to the MCU.
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Brad Winderbaum Rewatched All Of Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. Relatively Recently
In an Agatha All Along interview with ScreenRant, he said he thinks the old ABC show fits remarkably well in The Multiverse Saga. What we didn’t know at the time is that Brad Winderbaum started the massive undertaking of watching all seven seasons of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. He revealed on the Phase Hero podcast (via GamesRadar+). This is a massive hint that something bigger is in the works with that TV show.
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has 136 episodes, averaging 45 minutes. To tackle that show, he needs strong motivation. Even if someone watched two episodes every day without a break, it would take about 10 weeks to finish. Perhaps this is his favorite show. I know that I can easily binge through my favorites in a short period. He could be watching it purely for enjoyment.
However, it seems more likely that he is preparing for a project that would require fresh, encyclopedic knowledge of the TV show. Ultimately, Zodiac could be that project. He may have been beefing up on his Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. knowledge so that he could meaningfully contribute to the planning and execution.
- Release Date
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2013 – 2020-00-00
- Showrunner
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Jed Whedon
https://static0.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2026/11/clark-gregg-as-phil-coulson-smiles-while-looking-over-his-shoulder-with-a-blue-screen-glowing-in-the-background-in-agents-of-s-h-i-e-l-d.jpg?w=1600&h=900&fit=crop
https://screenrant.com/marvel-zodiac-series-agents-of-shield-clues/
Dani Kessel Odom
Almontather Rassoul
