WandaVision: Leaked Storyboards Reveal Black Widow Reference

By Richard Nebens Updated:
Black Widow Scarlet Witch WandaVision

With only one episode remaining in Marvel Studios’ debut Disney+ adventure, WandaVision, the MCU fandom is craving answers. Eight episodes have come and gone with a wild story in and out of Wanda’s Hex, and the most recent entry finally began revealing the secrets behind some of the show’s mysteries.

Marvel’s title game was spot-on once again this week as “Previously On” took a dive into both Wanda Maximoff and Agatha Harkness’ early origins within the MCU. Agatha was confirmed as one of the witches involved in the Salem Witch Trials of the late 17th century, while Wanda’s youth was shown on screen, as well as HYDRA’s experiments that gave her powers.

This episode also explored Wanda’s more recent history, which was teased in a social media leak from a couple of weeks ago...

STORYBOARD ART FOR WANDAVISION

On February 13, Twitter user @Veloso_off leaked storyboard art from what was then only an unspecified future episode of WandaVision. These are now confirmed to be depicting Wanda’s arrival at the S.W.O.R.D. headquarters during her flashbacks in “Episode 8.”

All 20 images can be seen in the tweets below:

The first tweet shows Wanda’s first moments inside S.W.O.R.D. HQ, which looks slightly different in the episode’s final cut. Wanda also appears more confused here than she does in the final result, and the camera shows her from a side angle rather than a shot from the front.

WandaVision Flashback SWORD
WandaVision

The last shot also includes Wanda saying “I know he is here. All you have to do is give him to me.” Only the first part of this line was uttered in “Episode 8.”

The second post depicts Wanda first talking to the receptionist as the camera focuses on both of their faces.

WandaVision Flashback SWORD
WandaVision

While similar versions of these shots were shown, there were also a couple of cuts from further out, showing more full body shots along with the desk in full.

Wanda appears to be contemplating using powers against the receptionist in the third post, also discussing how Tony Stark was the only Avenger to receive a funeral. The other occupants in the building are all looking at Wanda as she says, "Too bad, then, if you're Natasha, but at least she was flesh and blood, right? But where are the memorials for Vision?" referencing both Black Widow and Vision as having been lost.

While the episode had Wanda much more subdued and less intense at this moment, the second line of dialogue was used almost verbatim during the episode. Wanda was adamant that she only wanted Vision’s body to give him a proper burial, which he and Wanda both deserved.

The fourth set of pictures gives a nearly identical feel to what happened on screen, although the shots were very different.

WandaVision Flashback SWORD
WandaVision

This art focuses completely on the receptionist, while the episode gave a view of the security cameras focused in on Wanda as she waited.

The last tweet shows Wanda ultimately walking through the doors to the back portion of S.W.O.R.D. HQ. 

This art depicts her pulling the doors with her hands at first as the receptionist says “I have to buzz you in.” Wanda then uses her powers to open them herself.

WandaVision Flashback SWORD
WandaVision

In the episode, Wanda doesn’t even bother with the conventional method of opening the doors, simply using her powers without a second thought.

THE LEAKS WERE LARGELY SPOT-ON

While not everything in these storyboard art pieces was a 100% match to the on-screen action, the essence of this scene was captured very similarly to how it was drawn up.

Like most storyboard art, this was likely first drawn up at least a year ago, if not two, long before shooting began for WandaVision. As the plot adapted, so did the imagery of this scene, although it appears that the vision for what happened in this flashback didn’t change much.

The biggest difference between the art and the episode was the dialogue, which had much fewer lines from both Wanda and the receptionist than originally planned. Given that the scene was less than 70 seconds long, this makes sense, especially with how tense the moment already was naturally.

That being said, the biggest casualty in terms of the dialogue was Wanda’s mention of Black Widow and Tony Stark, both of whom perished in Avengers: Endgame. Although it seems appropriate for her to mostly focus on the love of her life, who was killed in Avengers: Infinity War, the reference to two founding Avengers would have made this scene that much more emotional.

Even though this leak originally came about two weeks ago, it’s been proven as mostly accurate based on the action that made it into “Episode 8.” It will be interesting to find out if the next few days bring anything similar for “Episode 9,” but fans should at least look forward to seeing more of this material in Marvel’s Assembled, which comes to Disney+ on March 12.

For now, the wait continues for the season finale of WandaVision, which debuts on Friday, March 5, 2021.

- In This Article: WandaVision
Release Date
January 15, 2021
Platform
- About The Author: Richard Nebens
Richard Nebens joined The Direct in March 2020, now serving as the site's Senior Writer and also working as an assistant editor and content creator. He started his journalism career as a hobby in 2019 and is passionate about sharing news and stories from the entertainment industry, especially comic book movies, comedy, and sci-fi. Richard looks to expand his knowledge about movies and TV every day, and he is eager to stay locked into the latest releases and breaking news at every opportunity.