WandaVision: Marvel does domestic bliss in new images from Disney+ series

WandaVision is set to launch Marvel's TV universe on Disney+ and thanks to "Entertainment Weekly", we have new images from the upcoming series and more details about how the show came to be.

It's revealed in "Entertainment Weekly" that Marvel opened the set of WandaVision up to visitors and it became clear that the Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany series will be a superhero infused send-up to TV comedies of the past like Bewitched and I Dream of Jeannie. The crew reportedly came to set in ’50s-era clothing and used period lenses and lighting to capture the look of these classic and beloved TV comedies. 

WandaVision found itself in a position it didn't intend to be in and that's kicking off a new phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The Infinity Saga ended with 2019's AVENGERS: ENDGAME and Phase 4 was expected to launch with BLACK WIDOW and ETERNALS on the theatrical front while The Falcon and the Winter Soldier was to be the big entrance for Marvel on the Disney+ streaming service. A threat greater than Thanos soon loomed over all the world and that threat was the coronavirus pandemic. The global outbreak changed many plans for the MCU as theaters shuttered around the world and productions were forced to go dark. Despite these changes, WandaVision turned out to be the closest to completion and now it will be the first to be released this winter ("Entertainment Weekly" was keen to point out that due to the pandemic consistently altering scheduling, an official release date wasn't made available before their cover story went to press).

As it turns out, it was Kevin Feige, Marvel Studios' head honcho, who came up with the initial idea to take Wanda Maximoff and Vision and put them in this surreal tale of television domestic bliss. Feige is a self-confessed sitcom nerd and he thought these two characters were perfect to be the vessels for this new project. Feige enlisted Jac Schaeffer as head writer and tapped Mary Livanos as a co-executive producer, with Matt Shakman as director. Shakman's involvement only adds to WandaVision's sitcom sensibilities since he was a child actor on the Growing Pains spin-off Just the Ten of Us.

For the two leads, the show afforded a unique opportunity to explore their characters even more. Elizabeth Olsen joined the MCU in 2015's AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON and she says Feige won her over on the project by referencing specific Scarlet Witch comic storylines. Olsen couldn't go into which ones due to spoilers but she goes on to say "It’s been the biggest gift that Marvel’s given me, getting to do this show. You get to just focus on her and not how she felt through everyone else’s storylines.” For Bettany, his inclusion came as an even bigger surprise since his character (SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!…BEWARE…LAST WARNING!!!!) was killed in AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR. The actor was happy to learn that his time with the MCU would be continuing and he goes on to say "I thought I was being brought in to be let go. I thought Kevin was doing the decent thing and bringing me in, and he and [executive producer] Louis [D’Esposito] were going to tell me, ‘It’s been a great ride, and it’s over.’ So it was a really pleasant surprise for me and my bank manager, too, obviously."

WandaVision will be set after the events of AVENGERS: ENDGAME and finds Wanda Maximoff (Olsen) and Vision (Bettany) living the ideal suburban life in the town of Westview, trying to conceal their powers. But as they begin to enter new decades and encounter television tropes, they begin to suspect things are not as they seem. The show will also introduce new characters into the universe. Kathryn Hahn plays Agnes, a "nosy neighbor" who inserts herself into Wanda and Vision’s lives while Teyonah Parris plays Monica Rambeau, a character that debuted as a young girl in CAPTAIN MARVEL. The show’s creators are being very tight-lipped about how adult Monica fits into the weird world of Westview which could make her arc an exciting one to watch on the show. Other stars joining the series include Kat Dennings as Darcy Lewis and Randall Park as Jimmy Woo.

WandaVision is set to run over a course of six-episodes and they're looking at the show as six Marvel movies packed into the sitcom format. The hope is that this will begin a television dynasty for the series as well as be a proper launch for the sure Marvel projects that are on the way. WandaVision will also connect to the greater MCU as Feige points out that the show ill directly set up the 2022 film DOCTOR STRANGE IN THE MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS, a project that Olsen’s Scarlet Witch will play a key role in alongside Benedict Cumberbatch’s titular character.

Are YOU excited to check out WandaVision when it launches?