WandaVision


WandaVision is an American television miniseries created by Jac Schaeffer for the streaming service Disney+, based on Marvel Comics featuring the characters Wanda Maximoff / Scarlet Witch and Vision. It is the first television series in the Marvel Cinematic Universe produced by Marvel Studios, sharing continuity with the films of the franchise, and is set after the events of the film Avengers: Endgame. It follows Wanda Maximoff and Vision as they live an idyllic suburban life in the town of Westview, New Jersey, until their reality starts moving through different decades of sitcom homages and television tropes. Schaeffer served as head writer for the series, which was directed by Matt Shakman.
Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany reprise their respective roles as Wanda and Vision from the film series, with Debra Jo Rupp, Fred Melamed, Kathryn Hahn, Teyonah Parris, Randall Park, Kat Dennings, and Evan Peters also starring. By September 2018, Marvel Studios was developing a number of limited series for Disney+ centered on supporting characters from the MCU films such as Wanda and Vision, with Olsen and Bettany returning. Schaeffer was hired in January 2019, with the series officially announced that April, and Shakman joining in August. The production used era-appropriate sets, costumes, and effects to recreate the different sitcom styles that the series pays homage to. Filming began in Atlanta, Georgia, in November 2019, before production halted in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Production resumed in Los Angeles in September 2020 and wrapped that November.
WandaVision premiered with its first two episodes on January 15, 2021, and ran for nine episodes, concluding on March 5. It is the first series, and the beginning, of Phase Four of the MCU. The series received praise from critics for its homages to past sitcoms and for the performances of its cast, especially those of Olsen, Bettany, and Hahn, though there was criticism for the finale. It was widely discussed and analyzed by fans based on various popular theories, as well as by commentators for its exploration of grief and nostalgia. The series received numerous accolades, including 23 Primetime Emmy Award nominations, winning three. Olsen reprised her role in the film Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, which continues Wanda's story from WandaVision, while the spin-off series Agatha All Along premiered in September 2024 and focuses on Hahn's Agatha Harkness. Another spin-off focusing on Bettany's Vision, VisionQuest, is scheduled to be released in late 2026.

Premise

Three weeks after the events of Avengers: Endgame, Wanda Maximoff and Vision are living an idyllic suburban life in the town of Westview, New Jersey, trying to conceal their true natures. As their surroundings begin to move through different decades and they encounter various television tropes, the couple suspects that things are not as they seem.

Cast and characters

  • Elizabeth Olsen as Wanda Maximoff / Scarlet Witch:
An Avenger who can harness chaos magic, engage in telepathy and telekinesis, and alter reality. Olsen said the series brings the character more in line with the comic book version, including depicting her mental illness, while introducing the "Scarlet Witch" moniker to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Executive producer Kevin Feige said the series explores the extent and origin of Wanda's powers. Olsen felt her "ownership" of Wanda was strengthened during development of the series, which allowed her to explore new parts of the character's personality such as her humor and sassiness. She was thrilled that WandaVision focuses on Wanda rather than making her a supporting character as in the films, and was sold on joining the series when Feige mentioned specific Scarlet Witch comic storylines that inspired WandaVision. Olsen was influenced by Mary Tyler Moore, Elizabeth Montgomery, and Lucille Ball for her performance. Michaela Russell portrays a young Wanda.
  • Paul Bettany as Vision:
An android and former Avenger created using the artificial intelligences J.A.R.V.I.S. and Ultron as well as the Mind Stone, who was killed in the film Avengers: Infinity War. Bettany portrays a new version of the character created by Wanda within her reality from the part of the Mind Stone that lives in her, who is the embodiment of her sadness, hope, and love. The writers referred to him as "Soul Vision", and Bettany described him as "decent and honorable". He was influenced by the performances of Dick Van Dyke and Hugh Laurie for this version. Bettany also plays the original character, referred to as "White Vision" or "The Vision", who is reassembled and reactivated by S.W.O.R.D.. That version has an all-white appearance, similar to when the comic book character was resurrected with an all-white body and no memories or emotions. Bettany differentiated the two versions by portraying the latter as both familiar and intimidating.
  • Debra Jo Rupp as Sharon Davis: A Westview resident and wife of Todd who plays "Mrs. Hart" in the fictional WandaVision sitcom.
  • Fred Melamed as Todd Davis: A Westview resident and husband of Sharon who plays "Arthur Hart", Vision's boss, in the fictional WandaVision sitcom.
  • Kathryn Hahn as Agatha Harkness:
A witch who masquerades as "Agnes", Wanda and Vision's "nosy neighbor" within the fictional WandaVision sitcom. Hahn described Agnes as the neighbor that "won't get off their couch at the end of the night" and is "always in business", and likened Agatha's relationship with Wanda to Antonio Salieri's with Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. She explained that Agatha has been studying magic for centuries and is maddened to see it come so naturally to Wanda. Agatha was conceived as a mentor figure to Wanda, but was shifted by the writers to be more antagonistic to better serve the series' structure. Despite this, Agatha retains qualities of teaching for Wanda.
  • Teyonah Parris as Monica Rambeau:
The daughter of Air Force pilot Maria Rambeau and a captain in S.W.O.R.D., who introduces herself in the fictional WandaVision sitcom as "Geraldine". She has a "toughness and an ability to be a woman" in a male-dominated world. Head writer Jac Schaeffer's pitch for the series had a different character in Rambeau's role, but she was excited to use Rambeau instead when she became available for the series. Co-executive producer Mary Livanos added that Rambeau's inclusion was a discovery during development that became "really enriched in the show", as it allowed an empathetic character like Rambeau to become a "hero in her own right". The series shows what Rambeau has done since her introduction as a child looking up to her mother's friend and colleague Carol Danvers / Captain Marvel in the film Captain Marvel, where she was portrayed by Akira Akbar. Parris used Akbar's performance as the starting point for her own, taking Rambeau's relationships with her mother and Danvers into account.
  • Randall Park as Jimmy Woo:
An FBI agent working with S.W.O.R.D. who previously was the parole officer of Scott Lang / Ant-Man. Park felt introducing Woo using close-up magic, something he was trying to perfect in the film Ant-Man and the Wasp, quickly showed the character's development since that film, indicating that he is getting better at multiple things and is being assigned to larger cases. Park was taught the magic trick by a magician and spent several days perfecting it for the series.
  • Kat Dennings as Darcy Lewis:
An astrophysicist working with S.W.O.R.D. who previously interned for Jane Foster and befriended Thor. Returning to the role for the first time since the film Thor: The Dark World, Dennings felt Lewis would not have changed much as a person, but would be older and wiser after going to school to receive her doctorate in astrophysics. Additionally, Dennings felt the character has more confidence in herself now that she is viewed as "the boss" which she never was in the films.
  • Evan Peters as Ralph Bohner:
A Westview resident under Agatha's control, posing as Wanda's deceased twin brother Pietro Maximoff, who was portrayed by Aaron Taylor-Johnson in prior MCU films. Schaeffer and Livanos were eager to bring Pietro back in the series, and decided to take advantage of its notions of "what's real and what's not, and performance, and casting, and audience, and fandom" by having the character be "recast" within the fictional WandaVision program. The casting of Peters was a reference to his role as Peter Maximoff in 20th Century Fox's X-Men film series. Schaeffer noted that this recasting worked for the series on a meta level by playing on the sitcom tropes of recasting characters without much fuss and also of having a relative arrive in town who "stirs things up" with the sitcom's family. Shakman said Peters' role in the series was a way to play with the audience's expectations in a similar way to Ben Kingsley playing Trevor Slattery in the film Iron Man 3, in which that character poses as the Mandarin. Schaeffer likened Peters' performance to a mixture of the characters Jesse Katsopolis from Full House, Nick Moore from Family Ties, and Joey Tribbiani from Friends.
Recurring residents of Westview include Asif Ali as Abilash Tandon who plays Vision's co-worker "Norm"; David Lengel as Harold Proctor who plays "Phil Jones"; Amos Glick as a pizza delivery man cast as "Dennis", the mailman/delivery man; Ithamar Enriquez and Victoria Blade as residents cast as the commercial man and woman actors; Emma Caulfield Ford as Sarah Proctor, Harold's wife who plays "Dottie Jones", a "skeptical mom who rules the neighborhood with an iron fist and poison smile"; and David Payton as John Collins who plays "Herb". Josh Stamberg also recurs as S.W.O.R.D. acting director Tyler Hayward, along with Alan Heckner and Selena Anduze as S.W.O.R.D. agents Monti and Rodriguez. Julian Hilliard and Jett Klyne portray Wanda and Vision's sons Billy and Tommy, respectively.
Additional guest stars include Jolene Purdy as Isabel Matsueda who plays Wanda and Vision's neighbor "Beverly"; frequent MCU stuntman Zac Henry as Franklin, a S.W.O.R.D. agent who becomes a beekeeper when he enters Wanda's reality; Randy Oglesby as a Westview resident who plays "Stan Nielson", the town's doctor; Wesley Kimmel and Sydney Thomas as the boy and girl in the commercials; and Kate Forbes as Agatha's mother, Evanora Harkness. Ilana Kohanchi and Daniyar portray the Maximoffs' parents Iryna and Olek Maximoff, respectively, while Gabriel Gurevich plays a young version of her brother Pietro.