There's something about the superheroes and the idea behind their relationship with humans, whether it's a metaphor for the better part of ourselves, or the more flawed part of ourselves. So it seems to really be our own pop-culture version of Greek mythology.
Joss Whedon and all the writers of 'Iron Man' and 'Thor' found a way to keep Coulson saying something that keeps you guessing. I'm really lucky because a lot of people play agents and don't get nearly as much fun stuff to do.
If the day comes when I'm no longer playing Phil Coulson, I'll very gratefully bid him farewell, because it's been an incredible journey, but I've learned that it's best to just be grateful for where I am and make the most out of that opportunity that day.
The cool thing about directing is, whatever cool thing works in the scene, it's still making the episode be a great story, and everyone's working toward that goal, so it doesn't much matter where it's coming from.
In Jiu-Jitsu, every instinct you have wants to do everything but relax or breathe when someone's attacking you, and learning that takes a long time. I think that's why a lot of people stop at blue belt because it's really hard to do. It's hard to take that next step. It took me a long time.