During the season two finale of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., there was a scene at the end between Director Coulson (Clark Gregg) and Skye/Daisy Johnson (Chloe Bennet) where he handed her a folder with the word Caterpillars attached to it. (As seen below.) This immediately led fans to speculate that season three would be focusing on Secret Warriors.

After the season two finale aired, Entertainment Weekly had a chance to sit down with executive producer Jeff Bell and ask him if they were setting up Secret Warriors for season three. Of course, at the time Bell played coy.

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Are you setting up Secret Warriors for next season?

JEFFREY BELL: I would say setting up is perhaps an over statement. Certainly we’re tipping our hat to a woman named Daisy Johnson talking to Coulson about a secret group of powered people.

Now today, Variety has confirmed that season three will see Secret Warriors make their way to Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D..

Here’s there full announcement:

When “Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD” returns to ABC this fall, the hit show will venture further into comic book territory by introducing characters inspired by Marvel’s “Secret Warriors,” Variety can exclusively reveal.

As Marvel fans know, in the comics, the Secret Warriors are a team of superpowered agents assembled by Nick Fury — including Daisy “Quake” Johnson (played by **Chloe Bennet* on the show). These special individuals are drawn from Fury’s Caterpillar initiative (which eagle-eyed viewers may have spotted an easter egg for in the season two finale) — made up of people with potential abilities who have remained hidden and thus are less likely to be compromised by their enemies.

Season three of “SHIELD” will introduce new friends and foes based on the “Secret Warriors” comic series when it premieres on Sept. 29. In the aftermath of SHIELD’s battle with Jiaying and the Inhumans, Director Coulson (Clark Gregg) will search the world for more powered people and assemble an extraordinary new team to deal with threats unlike the world has ever seen. However, the Agents of SHIELD will soon find out they’re not the only ones tracking down these new Inhumans.

While the movies won’t be at SDCC this year, Marvel will be bringing both Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Agent Carter to SDCC. (You can view the schedules for those here.) Even more, for fans lucky to attend SDCC, Marvel will be “giving fans a chance to be part of the team”.

From Thursday, July 9 through Saturday, July 11, SHIELD ambassadors will be roaming the convention to find the most dedicated fans and rewarding them with limited edition “Secret Warriors” pins. You can track the ambassadors on Twitter by following the @AgentsOfSHIELD account.

Fans who find themselves recruited to the “Secret Warriors” at Comic-Con will complete their first mission by posting a photo of themselves wearing the pin to social media using #SHIELDSecretWarriors, after which, “Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD” cast members will select some of their favorite photos, which could get posted to the show’s official Twitter page, @AgentsOfSHIELD. (Terms and conditions here.)

Along with the announcement, Variety revealed a new poster for the upcoming season.

It’s a clearer version of the tease that was posted on the official Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Instagram account shortly before Variety’s report came out. You can view the original tease by heading over here.

Given that they announced the arrival of Bobbi Morse at last year’s SDCC panel, I’d expect some pretty exciting announcements to be planned for this year’s panel!

The third season of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. starts on ABC on Tuesday, September 29th, while the first two seasons are currently available to stream on Netflix.

Source: Variety.