The resemblance is uncanny...

In another example of non-Americans being cast as all-American superheroes, Canadian comedienne Cobie Smulders, best known as Robin on TV's How I Met Your Mother, has been confirmed as a cast member of the highly-anticipated Avengers movie. The Avengers, written and directed by everyone's favorite Joss Whedon, is due out in 2012. According to MTV's Splashpage, Smulders has accepted the role of Agent Maria Hill.

A little over a week ago, Samuel L. Jackson (who will play S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Nick Fury) revealed in an interview with Jimmy Fallon that he would be reading lines with candidates for the role of his 'sidekick' in the film, sparking mass speculation on which actresses would be called, and what 'sidekick' role he was referring to. Contenders included Morena Baccarin, (Firefly, V), Jessica Lucas (Cloverfield, 90210 and Melrose Place) and Mary Elizabeth Winstead (Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, Die Hard 4.0).

Agent Maria Hill is a fairly new addition to the Marvel Universe, introduced in 2005 as a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent who became Nick Fury's second-in-command. Undeniably a popular character, Agent Hill plays a major role in the Civil War story line in the comics; even becoming head of S.H.I.E.L.D afterwards. Variety has confirmed that Cobie Smulders will be a part of future Avengers projects in the role of Maria Hill as well.

Prior to How I Met Your Mother, Cobie had small roles in films (Walking Tall) and TV (Jermiah, The L Word, Andromeda). This will be her first major role in a feature film. Not too bad, considering she will be starring with A-List Hollywood veterans Samuel L. Jackson (Nick Fury), Robert Downey, Jr. (Tony Stark / Iron Man), and Scarlett Johanssen (Black Widow). Maybe the Maria Hill character will even rate a film of her own, a la Iron Man, The Hulk, or Captain America.

Originally, many assumed that Morena Baccarin was first in consideration for a role in The Avengers, as Joss Whedon loves to use actors over in different projects, and had a history with Baccarin on his short-lived series Firefly. However, Smulders was a front-runner in consideration for the role of Diana Prince / Wonder Woman, when Joss Whedon was considering turning it into a feature film. That project has fallen to the wayside, which is just as well, leaving Joss to concentrate on The Avengers (and hopefully, Dr. Horrible 2. I'm just saying.) Wonder Woman will be hitting the small screen this fall, anyway; if Cobie Smulders can continue on the hilarious sitcom HIMYM while becoming a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, that's just more good news for her fans.

See also:

More Avengers casting rumors

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