No one is quite sure what to expect from Marvel’s WandaVision when the series debuts on Disney+ in January, but the one thing we do know is thatKevin Feigeis throwing out the playbook this time around, ensuring thatWandaVisionwill be completely different from any Marvel entry before it.
Elizabeth OlsenandPaul Bettanyreprise their respective MCU roles as Scarlet Witch (a.k.a. Wanda Maximoff) and Vision for this six-episode series that tells a superhero story through a sitcom lens. To that end, Feige recently toldEmpirethat the series will employ the same documentary style asThe OfficeandModern Family, which feature characters who directly address the camera.
The series will likely work its way up to the modern day homage, as the footage we’ve seen fromWandaVisionso far has paid tribute to old black-and-white TV shows, the kind where Mom and Dad slept in separate beds. Now imagine two super-powered beings introduced to that nostalgic aesthetic. Sounds intriguing, right?
A tour through sitcom history may sound like a radical departure for the MCU, but perhaps Wanda grew up consuming American television, so she retreats into that safe, comfortable world following the death of Vision inAvengers: Infinity War. It makes sense that she would look for the stability that sitcoms offer during a difficult time.
Feige said he grew up an avid fan of the small box in his living room. “I loved TV, and watched far too muchThe Dick Van Dyke ShowandI Love LucyandBewitchedand everything,” Feige told Empire. Now, those classic TV shows may go over the head of many younger viewers, but that’s whyWandaVisionwill take some of its cues from the various new storytelling techniques popularized by today’s sitcoms. “We go up to theModern FamilyandThe Officestyle – the talk-to-the-camera, shaky-camera, documentary style," added Feige, who also explained whyWandaVisionwas the perfect way to bring the MCU to Disney’s streaming service.
“If you look at the Infinity Saga, I don’t think any single person has gone through more pain and trauma than Wanda Maximoff. And no character seems to be as powerful as Wanda Maximoff. And no character has a power-set that is as ill-defined and unexplored as Wanda Maximoff. So it seemed exploring that would be worthwhile post-Endgame. Who else is aware of that power? Where did it come from? Did the Mind Stone unlock it?”
These are all good questions that are above my pay grade, but I can’t wait to find out the answers early next year. To watch a trippy trailer for the show,click here, and for a brief update on Vision’s junk straight from Bettany himself,click here.
