Elizabeth Olsen says that she had to fight to wear Scarlet Witch's comics-accurate costume in WandaVision. The actress is officially donning the character's classic look from the comics in an upcoming episode of the Marvel Studios series for Disney+.
Debuting in 2015's Avengers: Age of Ultron, the MCU's version of Scarlet Witch has been significantly different from her print counterpart. For starters, they had to alter her origins so she's not technically a mutant due to previous character rights complications, although now, that may change considering that the X-Men are back with Marvel Studios. Aside from that, the franchise has yet to fully explore her power set, primarily because of the lack of complete focus on the character with interest primarily in the original Avengers. But after the Infinity Saga, all of that is set to change as she assumes a more prominent position in the MCU starting first with her ongoing appearance in WandaVision.
The MCU's half-baked take on Wanda thus far also impacted her look on the screen. While the franchise is known for mostly sticking to what its characters look like in print, Scarlet Witch's costume has been toned down in the franchise. So when the chance to fully don her red headpiece and cape ensemble came up in WandaVision, Olsen said she insisted on going all the way in a new interview with Vanity Fair.
“I was so excited! We have a Halloween episode and they were trying to figure out how big of a nod to the character we were going to do and it did start off with the classic Scarlet Witch costume. It was kind of like a gypsy thing that has to wear a headband and I, like, fought for it. I was like ’No, we have to go full into it...this is like the greatest thing, if Paul’s doing it, I’m doing it.”
Scarlet Witch and Vision's comic-accurate costumes were teased for WandaVision long before any official footage was revealed for the show. Not long after the project was announced, Marvel Studios released a piece of concept art for the project showing the pair in a suburbia setting just like how its first three episodes looked like. But, at the left-hand corner of the illustration, the pair's shadows outlined their comic book-accurate appearance, with Scarlet Witch's pointy headpiece prominent. Eventually, this was confirmed through a trailer with the scene expected to be a part of the 2000-set episode of the series. Prior to that, it's already referenced through the show's beautiful credits.
Interestingly, when Olsen first signed up for the job, director Joss Whedon promised her that she wouldn't be donning the more provocative costume of Scarlet Witch in the comics. Chances are that they're going to stick with her established look on the screen as her comic-accurate look only made possible through an upcoming Halloween-themed episode for WandaVision, it's still something to look forward to. Perhaps, it could also be an indication that Marvel Studios is finally ready to make her the A+ character that she's always been in print.
Source: Vanity Fair