Marvel Zombies Confirmed Why Scarlet Witch’s Multiverse Break Is So Dangerous

Warning: This article contains spoilers for What If...? episode 5.

In addition to swarming the Marvel Cinematic Universe with zombies, Marvel's What If...? confirmed the dangers of Scarlet Witch's Multiverse break. Thanks to What If...? episode 5, the MCU finally got superpowered zombies. In the episode, a zombie virus escapes from the Quantum Realm, and things are all over once the Avengers get infected. With zombie superheroes running around, no one even stands a chance of escaping. Several characters join the undead, including Hope Van Dyne/Wasp (Evangeline Lilly), Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau), and Sharon Carter (Emily VanCamp). However, there is still hope. In the end, the remaining heroes, including T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman) and Spider-Man (voiced by Hudson Thames), head to Wakanda with the Mind Stone, trying to distribute a cure.

Like the zombies in episode 5, What If...? constantly shows how the MCU is never far from taking a dark turn. In episode 2, T'Challa becomes Star-Lord instead of Peter Quill (voiced by Brian T. Delaney). Though T'Challa brings prosperity to the galaxy, the change also leaves Quill vulnerable for his nefarious Celestial dad, Ego (Kurt Russell). Additionally, episode 4 showed how Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) could easily break bad. In the episode, Strange doesn't realize that trying to change the past could destroy the universe. He only understands when it's too late and pleads with The Watcher (Jeffrey Wright) to help.

What If...? episode 5 reveals another troubling moment with Scarlet Witch. In the episode, Vision (Paul Bettany) shows he's discovered a cure to the zombie virus, and the Mind Stone is the key. However, his love, Scarlet Witch, has been bitten by zombies, and her powers are so strong that she can resist the cure. Not being able to kill her, Vision has been using innocent people to keep her alive. Unfortunately, the zombie Scarlet Witch is too powerful for any of the heroes to defeat, which doesn't bode well for the future of the MCU.

On her own, Elizabeth Olsen's Scarlet Witch wouldn't just turn into a villain; however, the zombie episode shows it may not be entirely up to her. With the Multiverse now breaking into the MCU, there are infinite ways for things to go wrong. Considering Scarlet Witch was last seen in a WandaVision post-credit scene reading from the Darkhold, a book of unfathomable power, there appear to be ample opportunities for the MCU to corrupt the character's mind. And with Scarlet Witch still mourning the loss of Vision and her kids, she may be more vulnerable to dark power than ever.

If Scarlet Witch becomes a villain like in What If...? episode 5, there may be no stopping her. WandaVision reveals that Scarlet Witch has Chaos Magic, which may mean she has reality-altering abilities and the power to create new timeline branches in the MCU. Scarlet Witch was already one of the most powerful characters in the MCU, nearly taking down Thanos (Josh Brolin) by herself in Avengers: Endgame. With the power boost she receives after coming into her own as Scarlet Witch in WandaVision, the rest of the MCU should be terrified.

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Marvel's What If...? releases new episodes Wednesdays on Disney+.