The following is a list of guest characters that have recurring roles throughout the series. The characters are listed by the MCU media or season in which they first appeared.
Introduced in films Howard Stark Howard Stark (portrayed by
Dominic Cooper) is a weapons developer who is framed for selling weapons to America's enemies. One of the weapons he created during the war was Midnight Oil, designed to give soldiers extra stamina during war, but instead it caused
psychosis and led to them killing each other. The U.S. military stole Midnight Oil and used it on the Russians, and Fennhoff blames Stark for the ensuing massacre. Fennhoff hypnotises Stark into bombing New York, but Carter is able to convince Stark to stop. He moves on to set up his own film studio in Los Angeles. In March 2014, Markus and McFeely stated that Howard Stark, the father of
Tony Stark,
CEO of
Stark Industries, and a founding member of
S.H.I.E.L.D., would be a recurring character in
Agent Carter contingent on Cooper's willingness to reprise the role from
The First Avenger and short film. In June 2014, Atwell confirmed that Cooper would be involved with the series. Ottobre-Melton designed Stark's outfits with his fugitive-status in mind, aiming to have him look "rich, comfortable, and sexy all rolled up into one." Stark doesn't wear a tie while on the run, unlike many men during the time, and tends to wear casual shirts with custom made jackets and vintage pants. In describing the character, Cooper said "You don't know what he does in the depths of the evening, and he's gallivanting around." He continued, "I love dipping into ... some of that material of
Howard Hughes, which I'm sure he's kind of been likened to", and described his biggest challenge in playing the character as "keeping it very realistic, but at the same time, tongue-in-cheek as well", and not making Stark "too broad". On Carter and Stark's relationship moving into the second season, Atwell said, "there's a new comfort level between Stark and Peggy ... they're on a bit more of an even level. She respects him hugely, but is also not afraid to comment on his lifestyle choices and how disgustingly misogynistic she finds him ... he does use women as a form of escapism for him and his Dionysian ways, but when it comes to Peggy, he doesn't see her as big boobs and red lips. He sees her as someone he can actually have a proper conversation with. Which probably scares the hell out of him". In the first-season finale, the creators ensured that Stark spoke of Steve Rogers as "the greatest thing [he] ever did". This was done to set up the former's obsession with super soldier serums and identify "something/someone he's prouder of than his own son", which pays off in
Captain America: Civil War: in the film, Stark is shown still attempting to recreate his super soldier serum in the 1990s; also, his love for Rogers adds to the antagonistic relationship between the latter and Tony. Cooper was nominated for
Best Guest Performance in a Television Series at the
41st Saturn Awards, and for Best Guest Actor in a Drama Series at the 19th Online Film & Television Association Awards. He lost the awards to
Wentworth Miller (for
The Flash) and
Jonathan Pryce (for
Game of Thrones), respectively.
Introduced in season one Angie Martinelli Angie Martinelli (portrayed by
Lyndsy Fonseca) is a waitress and aspiring actress who befriends Carter. Fonseca was drawn to Martinelli's "funky personality", which differed from her much more serious previous role of
Alexandra Udinov on
Nikita. Fonseca and Atwell discussed keeping their characters as friends, rather than falling to "jealousy or cattiness. There's nothing but just support and interest and friendship, because a lot of times it's more complicated than that on shows." By July 2015, Fonseca was negotiating to return for the second season, and that December she was revealed to be returning for a dream sequence in "
A Little Song and Dance". Fazekas said that Angie's appearance in the sequence is her acting as Carter's conscience, "speaking the things that Peggy maybe can't say to herself. It ties things back together from the first season and it's connecting all of these things in a way that only a dream can do."
Ray Krzeminski Ray Krzeminski (portrayed by
Kyle Bornheimer) is a misogynistic SSR agent who clashes with Carter, until he is killed by Dottie Underwood. Bornheimer was cast in the recurring role by October 2014, as part of the series "stocking up on male counterparts" for Carter to deal with throughout the series. In terms of costume design, Ottobre-Melton described Krzeminski as "a bit of a slob with his sport jacket, and open collar shirts." After the character's death, Butters explained that Carter would feel guilty about it moving forward, as it was her decisions that "inadvertently put Krzeminski at risk". His death also affected the series in general, with Fazekas explaining, "The stakes have changed now, they've gotten a lot more serious. The episodes that come subsequently really reflect that".
Rose Roberts Rose Roberts (portrayed by
Lesley Boone) is a
switchboard operator who works for the SSR in New York and later in Los Angeles. Discussing Rose's increased role in the second season, after making brief guest appearances in the first, Fazekas stated that the opportunity presented itself to "bring [Rose] out to L.A." for the second season, in order for Carter to have another person to talk to, "who knows her secrets and knows a lot about what's going on." Boone called Rose "a little bit of a bestie," trying to get information from Carter and Sousa to help "move things along" since she sees an attraction between the two. For the second season, Rose goes into the field, with Boone saying, "She gets recruited and she is herself excited that she gets to go out there and be a bad woman. I think she's quite capable."
Miriam Fry Miriam Fry (portrayed by
Meagen Fay) is the strict proprietor of The Griffith Hotel for Women, a boarding house where Carter lives. Fay was cast as the woman in charge of the boarding house where Carter lives in October 2014, set for a minimum four-episode arc. Fay and the Griffith Hotel were introduced as a way to have more female characters in the series, as "We were troublingly dominated by men given that [Carter] was the only woman working in the SSR". The Griffith was based on the
Barbizon Hotel for Women, one of the places in New York that "were considered safe places for women to live in the big city."
Dottie Underwood Dorothy "Dottie" Underwood (portrayed by
Bridget Regan) is a Russian sleeper agent disguised as a small-town girl from Iowa who moves next door to Carter. She reveals her true allegiance in an attempt to capture Carter, and later escapes after being defeated in a fight with the latter. Dottie resurfaces in an attempt to raid a bank account, only to be stopped by Carter and the SSR. She is taken into FBI custody until Carter breaks her out to help her defeat Whitney Frost. Underwood was created to give Carter a "strong female antagonist", and Butters noted that "we said, wouldn't it be great to have one of those people who is living right there with her be actually a bad guy?" In late January 2015, Butters and Fazekas revealed that Underwood is a product of the precursor to the
Black Widow program. Regan did not know the character was a Black Widow when auditioning, but quickly learned after being cast, as the showrunners wanted her to change her then current red hair, order to avoid being "a tip to the audience, because of
Natasha [Romanoff]. They didn't want to imply that every Black Widow had red hair and they didn't want the audience to see it coming." Regan trained with a
Taekwondo expert and studied
Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow choreography from the films in preparation for the character's fight scenes, while Ottobre-Melton referenced her Black Widow status by using the colors red and black. Underwood's initial "small-town girl from Iowa" persona was based on
Judy Garland's
Dorothy Gale from
The Wizard of Oz. Butters and Fazekas stated that Underwood "doesn't quite understand what it's like to be a normal woman" after her upbringing in the program, and is intrigued by Carter. Regan elaborated that "she's never seen anyone like [Carter] before and she's never been beaten before. There's this competitive but playful obsession with her" which is seen with Underwood's "flirtation" and "feminine prowess". Regan continued, "She knows that to be on top she has to beat Peggy ... So Dottie does want to get under her skin. She tries to make her feel uncomfortable and that might be with a look or a glance or what she says." Atwell said, "Peggy has male baddies that she fights, but to have someone who is physically her equal—she's a Black Widow, incredibly capable and very smart—I think that shows some balance for Peggy, like a flip side of the same coin." After Carter defeats Underwood and Leviathan in the first season, Underwood becomes "a lone wolf ... she's a woman without a country right now, but she is more involved in the [overarching] case" for the second season than it initially appears.
Johann Fennhoff Johann Fennhoff (portrayed by
Ralph Brown) is a Russian hypnotist working for Leviathan, whose brother died from the effects of Stark's chemical weapon Midnight Oil. Fennhoff infiltrates the SSR under the guise of rescued psychiatrist Dr. Ivchenko, and steals Midnight Oil for himself. He then tries to use hypnosis to make Stark spread Midnight Oil over New York, but is defeated by Carter and the SSR. He is arrested, gagged, and imprisoned with
Arnim Zola. Fennhoff's history as Doctor Faustus in the comics is referenced in the series, with him shown reading
Christopher Marlowe's
The Tragical History of the Life and Death of Doctor Faustus. Having Faustus meet Zola was intended to set up Hydra's use of mind control for the
Winter Soldier program, as seen in
Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Hydra's system of brainwashing and mind control is also seen in the series
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., where it is referred to as the Faustus Method.
Introduced in season two Whitney Frost Whitney Frost (portrayed by
Wynn Everett) is the stage name of Agnes Cully, an actress and scientific genius forced to hide behind her husband, senatorial candidate Calvin Chadwick, due to the sexism of the age. She accidentally absorbs
Zero Matter, which leaves her with a Zero Matter scar on her forehead, and the ability to absorb any living thing she touches. After she is purged of the Zero Matter, Frost goes insane and is committed to an asylum. In August 2015, Butters and fellow executive producer Chris Dingess stated that Madame Masque would appear in the season, and that an actress had been cast in the role. Everett was confirmed to be playing the character that October. After being cast and seeing a picture of the comic version of the character, Everett felt "'They got the wrong girl,' only because I look nothing like her. I was very nervous about it ... [and] thought, 'They will probably dye my hair dark, and I'm going to need to work out a bit. And those are some pretty big boobs.'" However, the producers were looking to take a different approach to the character, taking inspiration from "Hollywood icons like
Hedy Lamarr and
Lauren Bacall". The character also does not wear the gold mask from the comics, though the show does reference this, with masks appearing in the background of many scenes featuring Frost. Ivy George and Olivia Welch portray younger versions of Cully during her time growing up in
Broxton, Oklahoma. Series head of make-up Debra LaMia Denaver explained that for the Zero Matter "wound" on Frost's face, the "guidelines were for it to be like a cracked porcelain doll and then the black matter would come from inside out. From there, Jay [Wejebe, makeup artist] designed the prosthetics that we use and Robin [Beauchesne, key makeup artist] created all the different avenues the dark matter takes." Using reference photographs and pre-made prosthetics, the make-up team were ultimately able to apply the effect to Everett in 30 minutes. The "crack" was then augmented with visual effects, to add depth, sentience, and an "infinite black" by color-correcting the image, with the effects animators studying "cracking glass to better capture the animation effect." Fazekas said that, "Whitney is used to people treating her with a certain amount of deference, because she's a famous actress, and she's met her match in Peggy." She added that in the series, "You see the makings of a villain, but she doesn't start off evil. She starts off manipulative and not the nicest person you've ever met, but she's not a bad guy when you first meet her." Fazekas additionally noted how the sexist themes of the times were handled, by showing "that the only way Whitney Frost felt she could exert power in the world was through her husband, because she had been told her whole life, 'Nobody cares how smart you are, they care about how pretty you are.'" On Frost's relationship with Chadwick, Everett called him "her best friend. And like many friends and family, you end up [fighting], but he's always there ... he knows I can do what I say I can do, especially in the science world. So he's really the only one who gets me."
Jason Wilkes Jason Wilkes (portrayed by
Reggie Austin) is a scientist for Isodyne, the only company willing to hire him as a black man, who informs Carter of the company's Zero Matter discovery. He is rendered invisible and intangible following exposure to the substance, and under its influence he attempts to take drastic steps to gain power. He expresses remorse for his actions after the Zero Matter is eventually purged from his body and he regains tangibility. Austin joined the cast as Wilkes in October 2015. Wilkes, who originates from the comics, was changed to a black character for the series, which allowed the series to address racism during the 1940s. On the race of the character, Austin said "it does play a factor. It can't not, really. It's Los Angeles—or [rather], America—in 1947. So race does play a factor". Butters added, "We wanted to tell a rich story around [the blatant racism that existed] and not feel like you're preaching about it, you know, 'Racism is not good.'" For when the character becomes intangible following exposure to Zero Matter, the series' science adviser
theoretical physicist Clifford Johnson explained that the substance introduces the idea of moving in "another direction" from what is usually possible, and so Wilkes's intangibility is actually the Zero Matter taking him "somewhat off, towards the place it came from" in another dimension. Austin noted that this experience causes both fear and curiosity in Wilkes, and forces his role in the series to be more cerebral rather than action-focused as he is relegated to explaining science and planning until he regains his tangibility. On how Wilkes connects to Carter, Austin said Wilkes is "one of the top scientists in his field [working at Isodyne], but he's had to work hard to get there. It's sort of a similar struggle of an African-American and a woman in the 1940s to try to succeed, so I think that they both see that in one another and that's part of where the chemistry and connection comes from." Expanding on the love triangle that forms between Wilkes, Sousa, and Carter, Austin said, "we're very nice to each other. We're professional. I think that Sousa likes Wilkes enough and it's the same the other way".
Calvin Chadwick Calvin Chadwick (portrayed by
Currie Graham) is Frost's husband, the owner of Isodyne Energy and secret member of the
Council of Nine. He is a senatorial candidate for the Council, until he tries to turn over the powered-Frost to the Council out of fear; Frost absorbs him in retaliation. Graham was announced as cast in the role in October 2015. He compared his relationship to Frost to that of
Bill and
Hillary Clinton, calling them "a power couple" and adding, "I think that Chadwick was probably attracted to her because of her beauty, [but she's] also a very smart woman, very successful, also probably a Type A. We really strive, both of us I think, as a very successful actress and with a very successful business[man]. The world is our oyster. We're going to make as many pearls as we can."
Ana Jarvis Ana Jarvis (portrayed by
Lotte Verbeek) is the free-spirited and quirky wife of
Edwin Jarvis who quickly befriends Carter. She is wounded by Whitney Frost, resulting in internal complications that render her unable to have children. The character was featured entirely off screen in the first season, often as a "disembodied voice". In July 2015, she was revealed to be physically appearing in the second season, and Verbeek was cast in the role by October 2015. Verbeek was in Europe when she auditioned for and got the part, and
Agent Carter had not yet begun airing there, so Verbeek "didn't really know anything. I just talked to the showrunners, what is it about, what is the character about." Verbeek wanted to play more than just "the wife of", and noted that her take on the character is "somewhat unexpected with Jarvis being who he is ... Ana just brings a whole different dimension to him." Verbeek, who is Dutch, has "spent a lot of time in Budapest", which helped with the character's Hungarian accent. On creating the character, Fazekas said the writers "wanted to be really specific about who the woman is that Jarvis is just madly in love with" in order to highlight the strong,
platonic relationship Jarvis has with Carter. Fazekas added, "It makes sense in that, Jarvis likes Peggy Carter, so of course the woman he's in love with would not be a quiet, prim and proper lady ... We also wanted to be very clear that Peggy and Ana really like each other, and that there's no jealousy from Ana. Ana and Jarvis are so comfortable in their relationship, they're not going to be jealous of other people coming in and out of their lives." On some of the differences between Ana and Edwin, Verbeek said, "The first scene we had I walk in and I smack him on his ass, which is a sort of sexual, playful, fun thing they have. That's not something he would do, that's something she does, and he loves it." D'Arcy later revealed that Verbeek had improvised this on their first day on set, after having " flown in", calling it "brilliantly courageous ... to do it to an actor you don't know" and "so perfectly what they were hoping that Ana would be like."
Aloysius Samberly Aloysius Samberly (portrayed by
Matt Braunger) is an SSR lab tech who eventually goes out into the field with Carter, Sousa, Jarvis and Roberts to help them retrieve old atomic bombs at
Roxxon Oil. He then assists them in defeating Frost. Fazekas called him "a comedy guy, who plays the lab tech who is kind of disgruntled. He feels like, 'You agents, you just look down your nose at the lab techs,' and he's a thorn in Sousa's side. He's so funny because everything he says is completely earnest, but hilarious. He just annoys everyone ... [But] he also has his little hero moments as well." Butters called Braunger "a great comic addition to our cast."
Vernon Masters Vernon Masters (portrayed by
Kurtwood Smith) is a veteran of the
War Department and subordinate of the Council of Nine, he was Thompson's mentor and boss in the War Department, and manipulates Thompson into doing the bidding of the Council. In October 2015, Smith was cast in the "major recurring role" of Masters for the second season, having previously worked with Butters and Fazekas on their television series
Resurrection. Though the executive producers never thought that they would be able to get Smith for the series, they developed and wrote Masters with the actor in mind. The character was intended to be killed off at the end of the season, and a version of that was filmed, but the writers ultimately decided to leave Masters' fate "ambiguous" as they enjoyed working with Smith, with Fazekas saying, "The nice thing about that is we could go both ways on it. Maybe we never see him again or maybe we see him again and by the way he's full of Zero Matter now. The last thing you saw was Whitney Zero Mattering him and then getting interrupted. But it's still in him. Either way, we wanted to keep our options open."
Joseph Manfredi Joseph Manfredi (portrayed by
Ken Marino) is the leader of the
Maggia crime syndicate branch in Los Angeles who aids Frost, having previously dated her. He is also an old acquaintance of Howard Stark, and helps Stark and the SSR defeat Frost when she begins losing her mind to the Zero Matter. Marino was cast in November 2015, on which Fazekas said, "He's obviously very funny, but he also is a great dramatic actor. We had talked about him for a different role, but it was too small of a role. Then we knew we wanted him in [the] Manfredi role. So that role became so much bigger because it was Ken." About the character, Fazekas added, "What I love about Manfredi is he's funny, he can flip on a dime and be a total psycho, and he is madly in love with Whitney and genuinely so—even when she's cuckoo. Their scenes together, there's such a tenderness to them". Since the character differs from its comic counterpart, Marino said "the two things [vital to the character]" were defining that Manfredi "definitely was the muscle for Whitney, and that he did have a true love for her." Marino wanted to make sure Manfredi "felt like he was an old-school tough guy" and felt that Frost was "the one true love for him", comparing their relationship to
Joe DiMaggio and
Marilyn Monroe's. ==Guest characters==