WandaVision creator confirms deep ties to 1 surprising upcoming Marvel movie
What does it mean for the MCU?
Marvel fans know to stay in their seats (or, during a pandemic, on their couches at home) for the credits. Ever since Iron Man, Marvel has reliably used that space to teases what's to come in the Marvel Cinematic Universe during and after the credits.
This hasn't been the case for the first three episodes of WandaVision, but that doesn't mean you can start skipping the credits anytime soon. In a recent interview, showrunner Jac Schaeffer teased the possibility of a WandaVision post-credits scene while confirming the show's rumored connections to a major upcoming Marvel movie.
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What Happened? — In a new interview with Entertainment Tonight, WandaVision creator and head writer Jac Schaeffer was grilled about the deep secrets of the trippy new Marvel series. At a few key points, ET asked Schaeffer about a post-credits scene in the show's ninth and final episode, due to stream on March 5.
"I would say that in any Marvel property, you should watch the thing in its entirety, no matter what," Schaeffer said. "That's what I would say."
Schaeffer further added that the credits are "so pretty," humorously implying fans really ought to watch them closely. "Aren't they so pretty, those credits? So pretty."
Later in the interview, ET asks Schaeffer about any communication with the filmmakers behind the next Spider-Man film (heavily speculated to involve a multiverse crossover) and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, directed by Sam Raimi. Schaeffer confirmed she's in contact with them, though she has no creative influence on either project.
"I'm lucky enough to be in communication with some of those folks and to know a little bit of what's going on," Schaeffer said. "It's not my job to oversee how all of those things interconnect, but I'm told and led in on the things that I need to know to make sure it all adds up."
Will WandaVision have a post-credits scene? Series creator Jac Schaeffer seems to say as much.
WandaVision's Vision — The Schaeffer interview with Entertainment Tonight is fun to read, because ET lobs MCU bomb after bomb at Schaeffer, who dodges them like a ninja. When Entertainment Tonight asks Schaeffer about the Hydra Soak commercial being a connection to Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Schaeffer brings up the weather. It's pretty great.
But this is perhaps the first time anyone associated with WandaVision acknowledged the series will tie into the next Spider-Man movie, due in theaters later this year on December 17, 2021.
The movie, which doesn't have an official title, will again star Tom Holland as Peter Parker/Spider-Man. While plot details are unknown, we know Spider-Man will meet characters from other Spider-Man movie franchises. Actors Jamie Foxx and Alfred Molina are reported to reprise their Spider-Man villain roles, Electro (from 2014's The Amazing Spider-Man 2) and Doc Ock (from 2004's Spider-Man 2) respectively.
Alfred Molina will return as "Doc Ock" in the still-untitled Spider-Man movie, due in theaters December 2021. His return is theorized to be due to an opening of the "multiverse."
Benedict Cumberbatch's Doctor Strange is also set to play a big role in the movie. And it just so happens the 2022 Doctor Strange movie, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, will be a horror-esque movie in which Doctor Strange wrestles with a nightmare of alternate realities. Oh, and Marvel already said that WandaVision is a necessary show to watch before Multiverse of Madness.
And it all goes back to WandaVision. While fans are still in the dark with what is going on, it's a safe bet that the series is planting the seeds for a multiverse-centric story that Doctor Strange will have to clean up, and Spider-Man dealing with the consequences. And it's possible we'll see the first multiverse domino fall in the inevitable post-credits of WandaVision.
The Inverse Analysis — While I sometimes give the MCU flak for being not as thought-out as fans think it is, it is impressive if there is a single narrative thread told across not just movies, but TV as well. During the Infinity Saga era of the MCU, none of the TV shows, be it Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. or Daredevil or Cloak & Dagger, bothered to talk about the Infinity Stones.
But in this new "era" of the MCU? Marvel may be more bold to do something as ambitious and as abstract as a multiverse story. And it's juicy that rivals DC/Warner Bros. are doing something very similar with 2022's The Flash. Whoever wins between Marvel and DC's race to the multiverse will be decided on which movie can explain what the multiverse is without audiences zoning out.
WandaVision streams new episodes Fridays on Disney+.
