Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness finished off an arc for Wanda Maximoff that began in WandaVision, and fans are now piecing together some of the final pieces of the Scarlet Witch puzzle.
Near the end of WandaVison, audiences become aware of the mysterious and slightly Lovecraftian Darkhold. A tome that grants immense knowledge of nearly every dark magic spell that exists. Utilized at first by Agatha Harkness, fans have wondered about the nitty-gritty of the book’s powers, what exactly created it, and after Multiverse of Madness, if it exists anymore.
A new fan theory posits that the grimoire is not just a slightly magical book with spooky spells, but instead has some level of sentience. /u/jbafofi4 believes that in true Sam Raimi fashion, the book is very, very evil.
The theory believes, similar to the One Ring in Lord of the Rings, the Darkhold was searching for its true owner the entire time. It took Agatha at first because it knew it’d be able to get the Darkhold closer to Scarlet Witch.
It certainly makes a good amount of sense, especially as Doctor Strange 2 also shows a shrine for the Scarlet Witch, which would seem to have been prophesized by the mere existence of the Darkhold. In Marvel Comics canon, the book was created by a Minotaur-esque god named Chthon, who uses it to be very evil, basically.
In the current 616 comics, the book became fused with Scarlet Witch following a classic bit of magical madness transpiring, and it’s possible that’s the destiny for the tome in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Wanda seemingly destroys the Darkhold, but knowing the need for sequels and further plot threads, it’s likely still out there.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and WandaVision are both available to stream on Disney Plus.
