Scarlet Witch has had quite the journey across the MCU to date. She began as, let’s face it, not the most popular of characters after being sidelined in her first couple of appearances, but thanks to her importance in Avengers: Infinity War, Wanda became much more of a fan-favorite. The acclaimed WandaVision then well and truly transformed her into one of Marvel’s most beloved heroes.
Her story is set to continue in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, which finally enters theaters in May. Following on from Wanda learning the truth about herself and also losing her family, the sequel will see Stephen Strange turn to the the grief-stricken sorceress for assistance when all of reality comes under threat. But will Wanda be any help, or will she use the fractured multiverse for her own ends?
Before we find out where Wanda goes next, let’s take a look back at how she got where she is today.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)
Scarlet Witch was first glimpsed in the mid-credits scene for Captain America: The Winter Soldier. The brief sequence saw HYDRA leader Baron Von Strucker watching over his test subjects, “the twins” — Wanda Maximoff and her brother, Pietro, two Sokovian orphans given powers via experiments involving Loki’s scepter, aka the Mind Stone. Strucker promised that the Avengers would soon come up against them.
Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
Sure enough, that foreshadowed face-off happened in Avengers: Age of Ultron. The Maximoff siblings, with their psychic abilities and super-speed, proved to be a challenge for the heroes, especially after they teamed up with Ultron. Once the android’s genocidal aims were made clear, however, the twins switched sides — until Pietro was tragically killed in battle. Afterward, Wanda officially became an Avenger.
Captain America: Civil War (2016)
Wanda had a key role in Captain America: Civil War, as it was her botched attempt to move Crossbones’ bomb out of danger that ended up causing such chaos in Lagos, thereby bringing about the Sokovia Accords. Despite her growing feelings for Vision, Wanda sided with the anti-Accords Team Cap and became a fugitive after coming to blows with the pro-Accords Team Iron Man.
Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
In Avengers: Infinity War, it’s revealed that Wanda and Vision ran away together to live in fugitive domestic bliss in Scotland. However, their past came back to haunt them when Thanos’ Black Order attacked, leaving Vision badly injured. Later, in Wakanda, Wanda was forced to kill her beloved to stop Thanos getting the Mind Stone — but the villain simply reversed time and plucked it out of Vis’ cranium, murdering him all over again. Wanda was then dusted in the Snap, along with half the universe.
Avengers: Endgame (2019)
In Avengers: Endgame, once the remaining Avengers reversed the Snap, those dusted in the Blip returned, including Wanda. Full of rage and grief, Wanda turned out to be one of the toughest soldiers in the final battle against Thanos, almost taking him out single-handedly until he resorted to extreme measures to distract her. After the Titan was defeated, Wanda attended Tony Stark’s funeral and shared a moment with Hawkeye as they mourned Vision and Black Widow.
WandaVision (2021)
WandaVision begins with Wanda somehow living in a surreal sitcom-like suburban existence with her husband, Vision, and their two boys, Tommy and Billy. It’s ultimately revealed that, in her grief over Vis’ death, Wanda accessed powers she never knew she had and hexed the town of Westview, creating illusionary versions of Vision and her kids. After encountering fellow sorceress Agatha Harkness, Wanda learned that she was the prophesied Scarlet Witch, destined to destroy the world.
What If…? (2021)
The What If…? animated series introduced a terrifying variant of Wanda from a universe where the Avengers had become zombies. In this reality, it was Vision who had lost his mind with grief after Wanda’s death and had resorted to tricking heroes to come to him, whom he then fed to his undead love. It looks like Zombie Scarlet Witch will feature in Doctor Strange 2, along with some new variants we have yet to meet.
Don’t miss the next leg of Wanda Maximoff’s MCU journey when Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness enters theaters on May 6.
