Hayley Atwell

Hayley Atwell portrayed Peggy Carter in Captain America: The First Avenger and Captain America: The Winter Soldier.

Significant roles

 * Mary Crawford in Mansfield Park (2007)
 * Ellie Harris in How About You... (2007)
 * Julia Flyte in Brideshed Revisited (2008)
 * Bess Foster in The Duchess (2008)
 * Lucy/4-15 in The Prisoner (2009)
 * Aliena in The Pillars of the Earth (2010)

Quotes

 * "We've got a fabulous crew and team of people working with us and I'm training at the moment six days a week to make her a bit more military and make it convincing that I could kick butt. But it's great fun and I'm really looking forward to doing it".
 * "Peggy has to look as if she’s able to outrun men while wearing heels.And she’s very tough, so I’ve been doing military circuits round Primrose Hill six times a week" 
 * "I wouldn’t be allowed to do a DC Comics film for years, if ever. It’s like Coke and Pepsi." "We can’t even call it Captain America on set – we have to use a code word. [The film] looks stunning and the scale of it is hard to comprehend."
 * “I likened her character to that famous Ginger Rogers quote. She can do everything Captain America can do, but backwards and in high heels. She’s an English soldier through and through, although she always looks fabulous. She might stand there with a machine-gun shooting Nazis, but she’s obviously gone to the loo beforehand and applied a bit of lipstick. She doesn’t need to be rescued. That’s exciting to me – her strength.”
 * “We do a lot of scenes together. He’s lovely. He sat there in silence, then said [Atwell adopts Jones’ gravelly voice]: ‘D’you like opera?’ I said no, so he sat there talking to me about opera for an hour, then writing lists of books I have to read and films I have to see.”
 * “Chris Evans invited us all to the Scott Pilgrim Vs The World premiere, and that ended up being a night of drinking and party games back at Chris’s house. Stanley Tucci loves his food, so he’s very proud of taking us to good restaurants and explaining the art of Italian cooking and fine wines, and through him we met Emily Blunt and her circle of friends, because everyone in this business knows each other. But I’ve also been having 5am starts every day, so I’ve been careful about when and how often I go out so it doesn’t affect the work, because I’m not a morning person.”
 * “It’s hard to prepare because you don’t know what will happen, but I’m not scared of it. I’m open to whatever comes my way and hope I’ve got the tools to deal with it. I’ve certainly got enough people kicking me up the arse, my Glaswegian cousins for one. They say, ‘You looked rubbish on TV last night,’ or, ‘What were you thinking?’ They’re brutal. But when they like something it’s probably good.”
 * “It was beautiful. I’d never been, so I didn’t know what to expect. I’ve always found Glaswegians incredibly open and in-your-face. In London, people don’t always want to talk; Glaswegians are a lot more engaging. And it helped having family who are Glaswegian, so I felt I was immediately welcomed into the city. I want to spend more time there.”
 * “I’m ready for it,” “I’ve got six or seven months before Captain America comes out, where I can lead a normal life and prepare myself. If any changes do happen, I can go with it and enjoy the ride.”
 * "I started off with a pistol and the director could clearly tell how much I loved working with it and said 'Oh just give her a machine gun' and I was like 'yes'! So I got to play with that for a few months. There's lots of action in it and I'd love to do more of it."
 * "I think she's quite stubborn, a slightly frustrated woman who struggles with being a woman in that time. But more importantly she's a modern woman and she sees something in Captain America that she relates to, and becomes kindred spirits. He treats her very differently to how she's been treated by lots of men, in this kind of dominated world she lives in. So she's very much a fighter."
 * "Chris was a gentleman. He's, I imagine, got so much more pressure than any of us, but yet he's incredibly sincere in this part, and very charming without being goofy, and very earnest in a way. He's a very talented guy and very bright, so it was a real pleasure to work with him."
 * "It's all come from the physical training. I trained with a guy called Simon Waterstone, who's trained Bond and Jake Gyllenhaal for Prince Of Persia, and he really put me through it. More than anything, Peggy is a woman succeeding in a male dominated world, and she's slightly resentful of that. In a way she feels she has a lot to prove. All of that came from training; just getting into that mental preparation of trying to push myself harder, and making sure I was in the best physical condition that I've ever been in. And then researching the comics genre, watching all of Marvel's films, reading a few of the comic books, and just getting a sense that it's tongue-in-cheek... And yet Joe cast me because he said he wanted someone who would bring a truth to her, that I wouldn't be sending her up all the time, that I would try to explore her a woman struggleing to make her mark."
 * "It almost killed me. It really was hard work. Simon Waterstone was fantastic - he has a fantastic reputation with other leading actors, specifically men. And he wanted to really support that fact that Peggy needs to look like she is capable in this situation. She an't be too svelt or too trim or too little, because you'd blow her over, she wouldn't be able to do it."
 * "''No. I do all my own stunts [laughs]! In fact when she comes on I'm like, "I'm really sorry, but you can go away?" Because otherwise it feels like a waste of all this training. All this training just to look good in a uniform seems to be a kind of pointless, really! I've thoroughly enjoyed it, esspecially the guns, the machine guns, and running up stairs and jumping out of cars and being thrown on the ground...it's been great fun.
 * Yes, I had a bullet-shell fired off near my head, when I stepped too close to Richard Armitage's gun...which was a bit dumb. And I had a mark there. And I had whiplash and a bruised rib from some other things. So yes, I've been in the wars a bit!''"
 * "I'm pretty much the only woman that has a story and a journey in this film, which is great, because on set I'm pretty much the only woman, and I seek refuge in the make-up truck with all the ladies! But when it comes to the set, to walk into a room and your boss is Tommy Lee Jones, and having to speak up, and to say your truth, and be clear and confident but not aggresive is something that Peggy's going to have to tackle, especially in the army, where she's having to be physically and mentally fit. And shes able to lead troops....She kicks butt....also without being too aggresive. I think she just has a quiet power. That's what I like about her. She doesn't suffer fools and she's not a victim."
 * "There's a frisson between them where she won't five in to his charms, and you realize she likes him because of how bad he is with women, and she finds that enderring as opposed to people who are trying to charm her in other ways. She's so sick and tired of it, of that kind of attention,, that he's a breath of fresh air."
 * "Amazing. I don't think that Chris's audience or fans know just what a talent he is. He's a brilliant singer, he tapdances to prepare for his scenes - as well as doing press-ups, of course, and other manly things! - and he's an incredible mimic. And we share a love of some classic '90s films. He's always coming up with one-liners from them. He's a very, very generous guy, and I think what's wonderful is that he's bringing a vulnerability to Captain America. it's not just about being macho and two-dimensional, and I think that audiences will see a whole different side of him."
 * "I think there was more of an acceptance then of women's roles. It obviously wasn't until the feminist movement came in the 1960s and '70s that women were starting to really challenge what they were capable of doing. Peggy has this immaculate look about her. You think, "She's carring a machine gun - why's she got red lips and red nails and heels?" However, she's still a '40s woman, and I think she should be presented in that way, because it's a reflection of the time. My grandmother, I remember, would sleep in rollers and lacquer her hair and be immaculate for breakfast. We just don't do that now, and I think that's something we should respect the women of that time for."
 * “''She can do everything Captain America can do, but backwards and in high heels! You think, ‘She’s a soldier, why does she have these lips, nails and heels?’ But she’s still a 1940s woman. It’s a reflection of that time.”
 * “I think Joe [Johnston - director] cast me, because he wanted someone to bring a truth to her. I wouldn’t be sending her up all the time. I’d try to explore her as a woman struggling to make her mark.''”
 * “I love firing a gun and the sense of responsibility that comes with it, you realize that holding one makes a lot of people walk away really quickly! I do all my own stunts… In fact when [the stuntwoman] comes on I’m like, ‘I’m really sorry, but can you go away, otherwise it feels like a waste, all this training just to look good in a uniform!’ ”
 * "When I met with the director of Captain America [out July 22], I hadn't seen the script, and I had to go meet him, and we spoke for like an hour. With a lot of those big films, they'll do that instead of an audition — and I prefer them, because I love a chat. I've found the messier the meeting gets, the more successful. You vomit on someone's shirt, it's probably going to work in your favor. Because you shared something: an intimate moment of drunken behavior."
 * "When Chris Evans first took his shirt off on the set of Captain America, I just instinctively grabbed his man boob. They kept it in the film. So we did a couple of takes of me being really inappropriate with my hand on his pec for the duration of the scene."
 * "Tommy Lee Jones [who plays an American military officer in Captain America] is really scary. Because he'll take his time answering a question. It feels like he's ignored you. He does it long enough for you to feel completely humiliated. I said hello to him and then there was a long pause and then he said, "Do you like opera?" He's got a very, very dry sense of humor."
 * "Oh god, I hope so. It'd probably be cheaper to get someone who was in their 80's wouldn't it as opposed to putting me in prosthetics for six hours everyday...I'd love to. I haven't been approached yet officially, but if I was, I would absolutely run at the chance."
 * "It’s really interesting because Leander Deeny, who plays Skinny Steve, would watch the takes between Chris and I, and he would mimic Chris absolutely, down to where he would breathe in the dialogue. So it meant that when they put Chris’ face on his body, that every time the face takes a breath, the body’s also taking a breath. He was so intricate. Leander was very committed to it. He’s a well-respected theater actor and he has incredible expression in his body. It was amazing to watch it, and a bit odd at times, to do a scene and have all these emotions for someone, and then to do exactly the same thing again with someone completely different. I ended up feeling a bit promiscuous."
 * "Yeah. But the minute I met the director and he laid out what he wanted, I thought absolutely, I’m gonna do this. I don’t have any kind of judgments over it – I think that has its place and its own market and has its own kind of value. And each one can be done well. Joe was very calm, and he had a real twinkle in his eye and a kind of tongue-in-cheek sense of what this film is about. He doesn’t have a big ego, Joe; he’s very down-to-earth, and he was kind of like, “It’s a superhero film. It’s not brain surgery.” And he said it’s important that these were rooted in something real, that it was something a bit more grounded, so that they were three-dimensional as opposed to caricatures."
 * "''F*cking huge! During that reveal [after he’s transformed into Captain America], I was just like, Whoa, I’ve never seen anything that big in my life.
 * Hayley Atwell: I did! I got to see it last week. I made sure before I started answering questions. I made a very strong case to Marvel about why I should see it. And they obliged.''"
 * "No! I just think the other actors are spread out here, there, and everywhere. They are working on various different projects. So it's hard to get reels slung around everywhere. I think they have been keeping it locked up. They don't let it out."
 * "There are some absolutely thrilling action scenes in this movie. Especially the zip wire going onto the train. That seems to be so well received. I love watching the scenes that I wasn't necessarily involved in. Because it's like, "Wow! That's what they were doing that day! That is extraordinary!" There are also so many wonderful characters in it. You have Tommy Lee Jones, and then there is Hugo Weaving. They all add such depth to what they are doing. There is a humor and wit. They add a sparkle to it. It never gets too cheesy. I think they handled it really well."
 * "No, I saw what I could. They just had different scenes shooting at different studios. I would stick around and watch what I could. There would be whole days of shooting at studios that I didn't even know existed. This was such a huge production. I remember my friends coming on set, and they gave us a tour. I would see something, and say to one of the producers, "That exists? That is incredible!" It would be a huge prop. A car, or an airplane being made in some studio somewhere. It was impossible to see everything."
 * "Oh, I know where his chin and his neck is. That part was pretty simple."
 * "He is a very intelligent, well-respected theater actor. What was amazing, physically, was watching him watch the monitors when Chris Evans would do a take. He would then mimic every single move, even the breathing. They would do certain takes, and if you could see the breath in his face, you could see the breath in his chest, at the same time. That is the kind of detail that Leander Deeny put into it. He knows he is a skinny guy. He is self aware, but I don't think he has a complex about it. He is very comfortable in his own skin. He is a performer, and he is really good at what he does."
 * "Yes. He worked incredibly hard. You can actually see him in the bar scene. When the boys get another round, the blonde barman behind the bar is actually Leander. Its fun to see him in that. You get to see the whole of him, instead of just from the neck down."
 * "I thought, "Wow! I am in such great hands." It made me feel like I wanted to give him my best. Obviously, I watched, again, all of his films before I started filming this one. There was a feeling there, like, "Oh, yeah, you really are going to make this look quite spectacular." For me, I wanted to show him that I was willing and able to do all of my own stunts. I wanted to do more than what would end up in the film, and I wanted to open myself up to any opportunity I could to really go for it. The physical aspects of it were one of the reasons why the script appealed to me so much."
 * "Possible, maybe her strength. I think she is quite equal to Steve. She certainly is not a damsel in distress. There are times when she saves him. She offers her support, and suggests ways that he could get to Bucky. Even in that final moment, being with him, they get to make that date that will obviously never happen. Because of what is about to happen in the plane. She is an important part of his life, and she is equal to him. Their relationship was genuine. There was a respect and like for one another. It wasn't just desire, because he has a hot body."
 * "All I can say is that I had such an amazing time working for Marvel and Paramount, I would love to be a part of their projects in the future. And this being an action film, the physical aspects were so attractive to me. It was my first experience with that, and I would jump at the opportunity to do it again. We'll wait and see how audiences and fans of the books feel about the movie. That might partly dictate where they go next, and what aspects they want to focus on. It was a lovely experience, and I am glad it is being received so well, so far. Hopefully it will continue."
 * "I don't know, obviously he can stand the test of time. Peggy can't. She's either long dead by now or in her eighties. I would love for them to have some kind of bitter-sweet reunion in an old people's home. He's obviously looking forward to something fabulous and she doesn't really have her own teeth any more! It would be bitter-sweet. I'm rooting for that. I'm hoping something like that happens."
 * "It was amazing, it was so big. It was a $150 million production. It was bigger than anything I've ever seen before. So walking onto set every day was almost like walking onto an adventure land, like Disney land. The set and the props were so big. Beautiful. Chris was great fun, he's very talented, a good musician, a good singer, good dancer - really annoying!"
 * "I can’t say yet [if I'll appear in Captain America: The Winter Soldier] because it hasn’t been officially released, and Marvel are very protective of their franchise."
 * "You might see Peggy in some other context ... I’m not playing Sharon Carter. But Peggy’s exclusion was inevitable because, obviously, Steve Rogers wakes up in the first one and it’s modern day. Peggy would be very very old or dead. So, it wasn’t really a surprise to me."
 * "They're so tight, the Marvel family, and private. I can say that I am involved in some way in the second one. Just know that it's not me being cryptic, it's Marvel. They can just as easily kill me off if I threaten to tell the story before it's time. They're keeping it all under wraps."
 * "There's been an online campaign for Peggy to be featured. People really liked her. So Marvel have made sure that as part of ComicCon there will be a little kind of snapshot as to what Peggy's actually really capable of, which was finished here and which was great fun. Hopefully, it will lead to other things."
 * "I'd revisit Peggy again. She's pretty uptight. I'd like to, if I get a spin-off, definitely add a bit of humour in there. She's very British. Very uptight. Let's hope if she gets a spin-off it's modern day, so she can relax a little bit, let go of the uniform."