Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness seems likely to draw upon a classic comic book story called House of M — and here are all the ways that has been set up in the MCU. Elizabeth Olsen's Scarlet Witch joined the MCU in 2015's Avengers: Age of Ultron, initially as a villain but ultimately as a member of the Avengers. She's now considered Marvel's most powerful hero, a threat to serious Thanos was willing to bombard his army in a desperate attempt to defeat her in Avengers: Endgame.

Elizabeth Olsen has long discussed the idea of doing a House of M story in the MCU. "I would love to [do a standalone], and I would love it to be House Of M, which is a comic book series of The Vision and Scarlet Witch having a make-believe family," she explained in an interview back in 2018. "Then they [Vision and her family] have to tell her that she was make-believing the entire time, and she has a very traumatic experience and screams, and kills all the mutants – but that’s an X-Men story so we’d have to adjust the ending." Olsen was actually blending the buildup to House of M with the comic book event itself, but all signs are that her hopes will soon be fulfilled.

Related: Doctor Strange 2: Every Dimension The Multiverse Of Madness Could Visit

Trailers for WandaVision most certainly set up themes of psychological trauma and reality warping, and have contained several House of M references. That suggests Doctor Strange 2 — apparently about a "Multiverse of Madness" — will be the real deal. Here's how the MCU has set this up.

Introducing Magic in Doctor Strange

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Marvel was initially wary of introducing magic into the MCU, a shared universe built on a pseudo-scientific foundation. This was most notable in 2011's Thor, in which the God of Thunder told Jane Foster he came from a realm where science and sorcery were one and the same thing — a saying reminiscent of Arthur C. Clarke's maxim that any sufficiently advanced technology will look like magic. When Marvel finally took the risk with 2016's Doctor Strange, they gave magic a very specific definition. "The language of the mystics is as old as civilization," the Ancient One explained in a key piece of dialogue. "The sorcerers of antiquity called the use of this language 'spells.' But if that word offends your modern sensibilities, you can call it 'program.' The source code that shapes reality." This definition clearly establishes magic as something that can reshape reality — setting up the possibility that a sorceress of sufficient power could actually create whole new timelines.

Transforming Scarlet Witch's Powers

The one problem with this theory is that Scarlet Witch's powers in the MCU are very different to the comicsAvengers: Age of Ultron introduced Wanda Maximoff as a telepath and telekinetic, essentially a Jean Grey analogue. And yet, the movies have indeed subtly suggested there is a link between Scarlet Witch's powers and her psychological state, with her most remarkable feats coming at moments of intense anguish — whether after the death of her brother Quicksilver, or when she confronted Thanos while still grieving for Thanos.

But Marvel has already begun preparing the way for a retcon of Wanda's powers, however. Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige suggested a Scarlet Witch retcon in an interview back in 2016, around the release of Doctor Strange, when he compared her powers to Strange's. "She's never had any training," he explained. "She's figuring it out. Arguably, you could say that that's why her powers are much more chaotic and much more loose in the way that we showcased those light effects." It's reasonable to assume WandaVision will see Scarlet Witch's powers expand in accordance with Feige's words, transforming her into a sorceress with the ability to rewrite reality. From there, it's only a small step from WandaVision to Doctor Strange 2 — and the House of M.

More: WandaVision Can't Show Vision and Scarlet Witch's Most Awkward Moment

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