WandaVisioncertainly left its mark as Disney Plus’ first Marvel series and Wanda Maximoff’s solo outing will do the same for the MCU’s Phase Four. However, according to Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige, the Scarlet Witch almost got some magical company from Doctor Strange.
Across its nine episodes,WandaVisionkept teasing fans with the possibility of epic cameos, partly due to some masterful misdirection from Paul Bettany himself. But, in the end, the show didn’t really fulfill the lofty expectations many had. Aside from Evan Peters’ “Fietro” appearance,WandaVisionkept things simple because the show’s reality-twisting plot already warranted enough attention in the lead up toDoctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
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In a recent interview for Rolling Stone, Feige revealed that Benedict Cumberbatch was, in fact, set to take part inWandaVision,and contrary to prior speculation, the ideas for his involvement were cut due to creative reasons rather than logistical complications related to the pandemic. As Feige puts it, bringing in Doctor Strange would have taken away from what was supposed to be a very personal story for Wanda, and they really didn’t “want the end of the show to be commoditized to go to the next movie — here’s the white guy, ‘Let me show you how power works.’”
These plans went as far as having Doctor Strange be the one who was behindWandaVision’scryptic commercial breaksas a way to communicate with the Scarlet Witch. In Marvel’s vision, despite how cool it would have been to see Doctor Strange, it wasn’t necessary and therefore it didn’t warrant an appearance from the sorcerer just for the sake of fan service. As a result of Doctor Strange being written out ofWandaVision, despite Cumberbatch inking a deal to appear in the series finale, theDoctor Strangesequel had to be rewritten.
In the end, theWandaVisionfinale and its post-credits scenes rounded offthe Scarlet Witch’s introductionto the MCU just fine, with calls for Doctor Strange’s intervention mostly stemming from the hype the fans themselves generated. Peters’ inexplicably showing up at Wanda’s doorstep as the fake Quicksilver actually made perfect within the rules under which the makeshift world of Westview operated, and it served to show the protagonists confused mental state.
Judging from Malcolm Spellman’s own comments on the possibility of havingSpider-Manshow upinThe Falcon and the Winter Soldier’s final episode, it would appear Marvel is really against pointless fan service. While that may disappoint fans in the short term, it will certainly boost the artistic credential of each of these individual stories for the better.
WandaVisionis now available on Disney Plus andDoctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madnessis scheduled to hit theaters on June 30, 2025.
