Marvel Studios' new storytelling direction is set to utilize multiple major plotlines from both the theatrical movies and streaming series, forming one cohesive MCU adventure.
While this hasn't been seen yet thanks to Phase 4 mostly starting with Disney+ outings, these paths are set to collide in a big way with 2022's Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. The blockbuster sequel will feature Elizabeth Olsen's Wanda Maximoff alongside the Sorcerer Supreme in a direct follow-up to her solo story in 2021's WandaVision.
After going on an intense journey through the stages of grief and officially taking on the Scarlet Witch moniker, Wanda's journey in the Doctor Strange sequel is still largely a mystery. However, a recent chat with Olsen teased some big things coming for one of the most powerful Avengers currently running.
MAJOR CHANGES FOR WANDA MAXIMOFF
MCU star Elizabeth Olsen sat down with Variety to discuss the journey for Wanda Maximoff in Phase 4, particularly how she's set to change from 2021's WandaVision to 2022's Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
While the character's story is inevitably tied together through both projects, Olsen wanted to make it clear that the sequel is there are "totally different utilizations" of Scarlet Witch between WandaVision and Doctor Strange 2. She also touched on making a "conscious decision" to discover something from Wanda this time "that maybe [she hasn't] tapped into yet with her:"
"I wrapped WandaVision on a Wednesday and flew to London on a Friday to continue playing this part [in Doctor Strange 2]. I could have used getting out of the mindset, though, because they were totally different utilizations of the character and people would have had more time to understand WandaVision had we not just wrapped. And so there’s just a lot of, 'We covered this in WandaVision…' It’s bigger than me, there’s lots of threads that are continuing on after me that I’m not aware of, and so it’s always about, “What can I get from this journey with this character that maybe I haven’t tapped into yet with her?” That’s where I keep approaching things from, so that I feel like I have some sort of strap-hang — that I can know that there’s going to be growth of some kind, even though it all maybe looks the same to other people. There is that conscious decision to learn a new element of this woman, or even of myself as an actor — something that I want to explore that I can bring to it."
A NEW EVOLUTION FOR WANDA
Wanda Maximoff's journey after WandaVision will be quite the thrilling one after dealing with so much in her first solo project. From creating an entire reality out of Westview, NJ to learning how to be a parent to Billy and Tommy, all while pushing her powers to new levels, the Scarlet Witch will arguably be one of the strongest supporting characters in any MCU solo movie when next year comes.
The post-credits scene in Episode 9 showed Wanda with skills legitimately "[exceeding] that of the Sorcerer Supreme" as she took some time off while her astral body simultaneously studied the Darkhold. This new power level will certainly come in handy knowing that she and Stephen Strange will have to team up against a multiverse that's about to burst.
Incredibly, almost no plot details have leaked from the set of the Doctor Strange sequel, although the duo will reportedly team up with Xochitl Gomez's America Chavez against the super-powered Shuma-Gorath. Regardless, with a subtitle that reads "Multiverse of Madness," the Scarlet Witch will need to be ready for a literal multiverse's worth of trouble as she takes on her next challenges.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is set to debut in theaters on March 25, 2022.
