Credit: Inside the MagicMarvel Studios President Kevin Feige heads the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), presently owned by media giant, The Walt Disney Company. The MCU has significantly transformed the superhero film genre in recent years — more or less shifting the entire movie industry towards the creation of “cinematic universes”, where multiple entities from individual films exist in the same shared world, and eventually, join together to deal with some overarching universal problem. In recent times, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) reached its pinnacle with the awe-inspiring conclusion of Marvel Studios’ Phase Three in the form of Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and Avengers: Endgame (2019), signifying the grand culmination of the epic Infinity Saga.
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Since then, the MCU has witnessed remarkable expansion, with its Multiverse Saga centering around Jonathan Majors Kang the Conqueror (though that particular villain/plot point might be somewhat short-lived), with the recent conclusion of Phase Four with Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022) and Phase Five beginning with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023) and James Gunn-directed Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023).
But the Multiverse Saga had perhaps a more humble beginning. On the heels of Avengers: Endgame, the MCU boldly expanded into the domain of streaming television, featuring actors from their mainline shows. The year 2021 marked their official entry into Phase Four with the highly anticipated debut of WandaVision on Disney+ (Disney Plus). The series captivated viewers with its fascinating fourth-wall breaking concept, showcasing the lives of Scarlet Witch/Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) and Vision (Paul Bettany) — who is canonically deceased — as they navigate seemingly perfect lives in the picturesque turn-of-the-century town of Westview, New Jersey.
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Amidst the unraveling of reality, an intricate mystery emerges, intertwining themes of grief, trauma, and the very essence of reality itself. WandaVision also delves into the enigmatic nature of Wanda Maximoff and Vision’s children, Billy Maximoff (Julian Hilliard) and Tommy Maximoff (Jett Klyne). The series features a stellar cast including Kathryn Hahn as Agnes/Agatha Harkness, Teyonah Parris as Monica Rambeau, Randall Park as Jimmy Woo, Kat Dennings as Darcy Lewis, Evan Peters as Ralph Bohner/Quicksilver/Pietro Maximoff, Debra Jo Rupp as Mrs. Hart, and Fred Melamed as Arthur Hart.
WandaVision‘s extended sequel, Agatha: Coven of Chaos
In addition to the expected portrayal of Hahn as Agatha, the leader of a witch coven in the new Marvel TV series on Disney+, it has been officially confirmed that several actors, including Sasheer Zamata, Ali Ahn, and Maria Dizzia, have been cast in undisclosed roles. Among the most noteworthy rumors and announcements is Joe Locke (Heartstopper) being cast as Billy Maximoff, Wanda’s son and the superhero Wiccan from the Marvel Comics. The show seems to adopt a distinct “musical theater” approach, following the success of surprise hits like “Agatha All Along.” This aligns well with the involvement of renowned lyricists and composers Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez, known for their work on Broadway productions like Book of Mormon and Frozen, who have created the unforgettable jingles for WandaVision. Adding to the excitement, esteemed Broadway legend Patti LuPone openly embraces her role as an elder witch named Lilia Calderu within the central witches’ coven — who has not been keeping particularly mum about her participation in the series.
Now, the anticipated WandaVision sequel is set to make Disney+ history. According to Vanity Fair via The Direct, Agatha: Coven of Chaos star Patti Lupone revealed in her recent interview on the Little Gold Men podcast that “all nine scripts” of the show “were written before [they] started”. This tells us that the previous reports of an extended episode count for the limited Disney+ series were indeed correct, if the cast have already begun bringing those nine episodes to fruition.
This is important news for Disney+, as it marks a return to the nine episode format over the more common six episode formats that other MCU Disney+ series like Loki (2021) and Falcon and the Winter Soldier (2021) have. It definitely seems like the WandaVision sequel is following much closer to its predecessor, with its more “network television”-esque format — shorter episodes, with longer episode counts.
What do you think about Agatha: Coven of Chaos‘ reported new extended episode count? Share your thoughts in the comments below!