WandaVision Theory: SWORD Are The Big Villains (& Want Vision)

SWORD could be the major villains of WandaVision - and it's possible they are a familiar enemy from the MCU's past as well. WandaVision has retconned the history of the MCU, introducing an organization known as SWORD who have apparently existed since the 1990s. Formed by the late Maria Rambeau, who was inspired by her experiences in Captain Marvel, SWORD has secretly been protecting Earth for decades.

SWORD is lifted straight from the comics, but it's crucial to remember they haven't always been good guys. They were created by Joss Whedon in his Astonishing X-Men run, and they were described as making SHIELD look like the Boy Scouts. That frequently led them into conflict with heroes like the X-Men and the Avengers, and in fact they only really started to feel like allies to the X-Men when their leader, Abigail Brand, began dating the Beast for a while. There's no reason to assume the MCU iteration of SWORD is any less morally ambiguous, as likely to be an enemy as they are to be an ally.

Indeed, evidence is building that SWORD is not a heroic force in WandaVision at all - but, rather, that they could actually be the main villains. And if they are, they could set up a number of potential storylines for the MCU Phase 4, including major problems for its protagonists.

SWORD's Mission Doesn't Match What Hayward Promises

Certainly, viewers who were introduced to SWORD in WandaVision episode 4 could be forgiven for assuming they were simply the next generation of SHIELD. They were, after all, introduced to the eyes of Monica Rambeau – daughter of the organization's founder. It has swiftly become clear Monica has a somewhat naïve view, however, given conflict has already built up between the top SWORD operative and her boss, Director Hayward. He has been keeping his actions secret, only letting Monica know what he feels she needs to. His silence on certain specific matters has been quite troubling, particularly his decision to monitor Monica's mutation without even telling her that Scarlet Witch's hex barrier had rewritten her body on what seems to be a cellular level.

The problem is that Hayward clearly operates according to a principle of compartmentalization, preferring to keep his cards close to his chest. Consequently, WandaVision episode 6 confirmed Monica, Darcy and Jimmy Woo are entirely unaware of SWORD's activities around Westview. That means they are entirely unequipped to assess Director Hayward's true agenda.

SWORD Is More Interested In Vision Than Wanda

WandaVision Trailer Confirms Vision Escapes Westview In A Future Episode

Unlike Monica, Director Hayward doesn't actually seem particularly interested in Wanda Maximoff. He dismisses Scarlet Witch as a terrorist, pointing to her troubled history with Hydra and her time on the run from the Sokovia Accords; furthermore, in WandaVision episode 6, he discards assets who have the best chance of understanding Wanda's psyche. Remarkably, given Director Hayward runs an organization ostensibly interested in scientific research, he is startlingly disinterested in trying to figure out just how Scarlet Witch's powers have been amplified, instead taking the first opportunity for a potential kill-shot.

It is rather the case that Director Hayward seems much more interested in Vision than in Wanda. He has left Monica, Jimmy and Darcy working independently, while his focus has been on figuring out how to track Vision's movements by monitoring the radioactive decay signature of his vibranium body. This approach allowed him to get a sense of just how many people were caught up in the Westview anomaly, but he doesn't seem to have even tried to make the count. Whatever Hayward's true agenda may be, clearly Vision figures as the most important part of it.

Wanda's Vision Rescue Confirmed SWORD Was Reverse-Engineering Vision

An important scene in WandaVision episode 5 shone a light on Hayward's agenda. It seems he has been well aware Scarlet Witch had gone rogue for quite some time, because in fact she had stolen Vision's synthezoid body from a SWORD facility. Looking closely at the recording, SWORD scientists have clearly been working on reverse-engineering Vision, because the synthezoid had been deconstructed – literally taken apart. This fits perfectly with a throwaway comment from Director Hayward in episode 5, before he knew Monica would wind up getting involved in his difficulties with Scarlet Witch; Hayward told Monica SWORD's focus had shifted away from manned exploration of space, towards home-grown "threats" such as nanotechnology and artificial intelligence.

Wanda's decision to steal Vision's body from SWORD should, therefore, be seen more as a rescue than a theft. In fact, looking closely at the dialogue when Wanda confronts Hayward in episode 5, it is clear she has something of a history with the man – she focuses all their attention on Hayward, and calls him "Director." This suggests that, when she was snapped back into existence in Avengers: Endgame, Wanda tried to find out what had happened to Vision's body; she discovered it was in SWORD safekeeping, met with Hayward to discuss the matter, and was unsatisfied with his responses. This may help explain why Director Hayward became so defensive in WandaVision episode 6, snapping at Monica that those who had been erased from existence by Thanos had no idea how bleak life had been during those five years, and how many compromises had to be made; presumably he presented exactly the same arguments to Wanda, and she found them unconvincing.

Who SWORD Really Could Be In The MCU

Aldrich Killian from Iron Man 3 and AIM from Marvel Comics

It is possible Director Hayward is simply a single misguided man who has spent the last three years transforming SWORD into an organization he believes suited to operating in a world full of threats more terrifying than he had previously imagined. He already expressed disdain borne out of his experiences during the 5 year blip kicked off in Infinity War, and he - like Tony Stark - is shaped by his trauma. Alternatively, it is also possible he is part of a wider conspiracy of some kind – and certain details in WandaVision act as clues to help identify the forces he is truly working for. It could well be that WandaVision sees the return of a group known as AIM, Advanced Idea Mechanics, the principal villains of Iron Man 3. Although Tony Stark believed he destroyed AIM, there is already evidence to suggest he was mistaken; a logo briefly seen in trailers for Black Widow reveals they are still active in the MCU.

There is, of course, also the possibility that Hayward is yet another element of HYDRA, considering the promise of that organization enduring every time a head is cut off, but whoever the true identity, there's compelling evidence they're aligned to an evil group. The five years of chaos following Thanos' snap may well have forced Director Hayward to enter into an alliance with AIM, one he believed necessary because he had learned just how vulnerable humanity really is. There would be a certain degree of irony to this idea; SHIELD fell because it had been infiltrated by Hydra and now SWORD had forged an unwise partnership with AIM. This would fit with the recurring hexagonal theme of WandaVision, and with the fact Scarlet Witch chose to represent a SWORD agent as a beekeeper when they entered her Westview reality: In the comics, AIM are well known for wearing radioactive containment suits that are mocked as "beekeeper outfits." If this is the case, then WandaVision has actually reintroduced a major threat into the MCU, villains who will surely come to dominate phase 4 and beyond.

More: Marvel Confirms When WandaVision Is Set In The MCU Timeline