The next chapter of the MCU will begin with a crash course in sitcom history. WandaVision, which premieres Friday, Jan. 15 on Disney+, will take a deeper dive into Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen) and Vision’s (Paul Bettany) relationship through the lens of classic sitcoms like I Love Lucy, The Mary Tyler Moore Show and more.
Since we’re talking about classic sitcoms, surely Olsen’s connection to sitcom royalty has to be acknowledged, right? Olsen is the younger sister of identical twins Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, who famously split time playing Michelle Tanner in the seminal 1980s series Full House.
“We have a very small nod, but it’s there,” Olsen confirmed to TV Guide, “And I credit [director[ Matt Shakman for making it happen.”
It will take a few episodes before WandaVision viewers get to see exactly how Olsen’s siblings and Full House get their shout out, but the Marvel actress will get to showcase her own comedic chops right off the bat. The premiere episode of the series pays homage to classic ’50s TV and was filmed in front of a live studio audience before the COVID-19 pandemic turned the world upside down. Olsen explained that while sitcom acting was a huge departure from how she’s played Wanda up until now, the rapid nature of filming didn’t allow her to get in her head.
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“She’s the ultimate sad girl,” Olsen joked. “She’s more than just that — she’s got a lot going on, but it was really fun [to film the series] and it was hard… Everything was so fast in this show. We had to work so quickly and it felt like we were never going to have the time to finish everything. And so it was almost like we were hurdling through it all without having to second guess ourselves. There wasn’t enough time to hesitate. We just had to do our homework, show up, and swing big. That was just kind of the energy.”
Even though the series is a departure from what fans have seen from Marvel and the MCU so far, Olsen teased that there will be plenty of Easter eggs for hardcore fans to enjoy, but she is also optimistic that this is a chance for newcomers to join the Marvel bandwagon.
“Hopefully we get some new audiences who don’t really know Marvel that well and I hope they enjoy this kind of twisted ride of sitcom-Twilight Zone space that we launch into,” she said. “Every episode leaves more questions. They provide answers and create more questions. It’s quite a cliffhanger type of a show and so I hope it’s welcomed.”
WandaVision premieres Friday, Jan. 15 on Disney+.