Marvel’s Ballsy Move to Replace the Respected WandaVision Showrunner with an MCU Debutant For Its New Series Could Easily Go South for One Reason
Marvel Cinematic Universe’s first television series, WandaVision, featuring Elizabeth Olsen’s Scarlet Witch and Paul Bettany’s Vision, was created by Jac Schaeffer. Directed by Matt Shakman, it was a continuation of the story following the events of 2019’s Avengers: Endgame. The series followed Wanda and Vision’s lives in the idyllic suburban town of Westview, New Jersey.
Upon its release, the first series in Phase Four of the MCU received a positive response from the audience and the critics, with special mention for paying homage to past sitcoms. The performances by the cast were highly lauded. But the recent update from the upcoming series solely focused on Paul Bettany’s character is not the news Marvel fans wanted to know.
Paul Bettany starrer Vision series helmed by Star Trek: Picard’s EP Terry Matalas
According to a recent update from Variety, actor Paul Bettany is all set to step back into the shoes of his famous and beloved character Vision as Marvel sets on making a series based on the character, scheduled for 2026. WandaVision showrunner Jac Schaeffer was initially part of the development, but the showrunner decided to shift his focus to Agatha All Along.
Kathyrn Hahn’s character Agatha Harkness will be seen reprising his character in the spin-off series Agatha All Along, scheduled for release in September this year. It is one of the highly awaited Marvel series as Hahn’s character and acting was highly appreciated in WandaVision.
Talking about Vision, the series is said to follow the events of the WandaVision finale, where Wanda’s Vision restores the memories of the ghost Vision, who was rebuilt by nuts and bolts androids with a white ghost-like appearance. Wanda, played by Elizabeth Olsen, allowed her Vision to fade away, but the ghost Vision still wanders. The upcoming series is going to explore his purpose in life, and there are chances of Wanda appearing in the series.
Terry Matalas, who garnered attention after his work on Star Trek: Picard, was appreciated, earning him a WGA award nomination. Brad Winderbaum, Marvel’s Head of Streaming, Television, and Animation, shared with the Variety in 2022 that the studio is in the process of rebranding the live-action TV to more of a traditional format. He added that they are probably reducing the number of shows.
However, what has been surprising is that Matalas has been allowed to take over the series as the showrunner, which has now created concern among the fans. Even though the Star Trek: Picard EP is well-known in the industry, Vision is going to be his Marvel debut. Fans noted that similarly, a debutant was hired to helm Secret Invasion, which turned out to be a disappointment for fans and critics. With WandaVision setting up a standard for the series, fans do not want the studio to repeat the same thing.
WandaVision star Paul Bettany was looking forward to his return as Vision
The actor spoke to EW back in 2022 and shared that towards the end of the series, the audience saw Vision fly off, which is a loose ending to the series, adding that Kevin Feige is a man who does not allow loose ends. Bettany added that he assumed that at some point he’d be returning to put on his tights and cloak for another outing as Vision.
The anticipation for the Vision series has been a long one, as the finale episode of WandaVision did not exactly clarify the existence of White Vision. So, the upcoming series could answer some of the questions that the fans have wanted to know.
The actor was asked about the experience of slipping in and out of both visions, and he shared that the process was intimidating. He shared with Marvel:
To differentiate between two characters in a way that didn’t feel superficial, I mean, of course, one is purple and one is white, so you have that going for you. But I wanted the vision to be familiar and yet at the same time kind of intimidating, and for some reason, I was intimidated by the idea. I kept putting off dealing with it because I knew we weren’t shooting it till later.
Bettany also touched upon the mid-air fight sequence where both Vision talk about the Ship of Theseus, and the actor describes the sequence as very confusing. He shared that playing two characters was kind of intimidating for him. He credits his stunt guy, Adam Lytle, for helping him out by not only learning lines but also running through them with him and playing the scene that eventually was showcased on-screen.
With the upcoming series, a lot of unanswered questions from the finale episode of the series will be answered, and the audience is looking forward to it. WandaVision is streaming on Disney+.
