Last fall, Disney+ announced a spinoff show for Agatha Harkness, the breakout star and villain of WandaVision, called Agatha: House of Harkness. As with all Marvel projects, the plot is being kept tightly under wraps. Agatha: House of Harkness is expected to be the 26th MCU show released overall and will continue Phase 4 of Marvel’s long-term film and television plans. WandaVision’s Jac Schaeffer is attached to write and executive produce. Moreover, Kathryn Hahn will be reprising her starring role as Agatha Harkness. Production of the show is scheduled to begin later this year, meaning Agatha: House of Harkness should be streaming on Disney+ sometime in mid-late 2023 if all goes as planned.
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There is a lot to be excited about. Agatha Harkness was a worthy adversary to Wanda Maximoff in the WandaVision series, nudging her back into reality on numerous occasions when Wanda was taking her fictional town of Westview (and all its inhabitants) further into the sitcom world Wanda created around them. Wanda was grieving the death of her love Vision, who died at the hands of Thanos in the Avengers films. In order to offset her pain, she made a fantasy world where Vision was still living, and they had a family together. However, this also meant the entire town was under Wanda’s spell before Agatha helped put that to an end. Agatha had plans to take Wanda’s powers, but ultimately was unable to do so and ended up trapped in Wanda’s fictional town. This wasn’t Agatha Harness’ first-ever Marvel appearance, however. Harkness has had a lengthy past in the comic book universe, so there are many directions the new series could go. Here are 5 reasons why we’re excited to see Agatha: House of Harkness.
We Get to Explore Agatha’s Point of View
Disney Platform Distribution
Is Agatha truly a villain or a victim of the circumstances she finds herself in? There is no doubt she is a witch who’s been accused of using dark magic to cast her own spells. She was even set to be killed by her own Mother and her Salem coven for this sin before reversing their own magic against them, which in turn killed them instead. When she met Wanda, it was because she had been drawn to the chaos magic of the town Wanda created, as it was the strongest magic Agatha ever encountered. At first, Harkness was very helpful to Wanda, assisting her with dinner and taking care of Wanda’s fictional children. That being said, it was later revealed Agatha was the one who killed Sparky the family dog, brought back a fake version of Wanda’s brother Pietro to confuse her, and helped make Vision suspicious of Wanda’s actions. Was this truly so bad though? By forcing Wanda to confront the truth, Harkness helped Wanda realize the full extent of her powers as Scarlett Witch. Plus, if Agatha hadn’t intervened, Wanda would still be keeping roughly one-thousand Westview town members captive in order to have her own make-believe world.
Kathryn Hahn is the Star of the Show
Kathryn Hahn helped make the Agatha character what it is on the WandaVision, and it’s arguably her popularity that inspired the studio to create the new series in the first place. Much like Falcon, Winter Soldier, and Loki, the beloved supporting characters of the MCU are now getting a chance to shine. Hahn is no stranger to big-budget films and series, and has an impressive resume with dozens of memorable roles over the years. Thankfully, she’s now getting her due as a leading lady. Let’s also not forget how Agatha’s catchy WandaVision theme song “Agatha All Along” received high fan praise upon the reveal of who Agatha’s “Agnes” character truly was. This in turn led to the song either winning or being nominated for some highly illustrious awards.
We Will Likely Find Out How Agatha Escapes Being Trapped in Westview
Wanda trapped Agatha in her fictional town at the end of WandaVision. There are many scenarios how Agatha could get out. Before being imprisoned, Agatha tells Wanda she will need her in the future. Perhaps Wanda will be the one who actually lets Agatha out to help fight another foe? If this is the case, Agatha could be released before her show even premieres since Wanda is already confirmed for Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. There have also been online rumors stating that perhaps Blade or Mephisto could appear in Agatha: House of Harkness. If so, could they be involved in releasing her? Agatha first appeared in the comics as the nanny to Franklin Richards in The Fantastic Four comics. Could there be some type of tie-in there? A new Fantastic Four film is scheduled to start filming in 2023, so an Agatha appearance would be a good way to re-introduce the fantastic franchise before their own new film arrives the following year.
Exploration of Agatha’s Life During the Salem Witch Trials & New Salem
Marvel Studios
While some backstory about Agatha has been explained, there’s now an opportunity to go much deeper in revealing her past — should the show choose to do so. In the comics, Agatha lived in Salem, Massachusetts during the Salem Witch Trials. After the trials were over, Agatha (as the most powerful sorceress in town) became the leader of New Salem. Agatha eventually has a son named Nicolas Scratch and the town of New Salem later becomes the home of the “Salem 7,” which are all Harkness’ grandchildren. Will the new show attempt to go this deep into Agatha’s background? Does the “House of Harkness” title gives away any spoilers of upcoming plans, by perhaps being about her time in New Salem?
Agatha Has the Power to Create Dimensional Portals, Further Impacting the Multiverse
Many of the current Marvel Cinematic Universe’s films and shows have connections to the Multiverse, where alternate dimensions can now be opened and explored. If Agatha was to be part of a multiverse storyline, this would certainly be one easy way of how to include her in it. With multiple shows and films still set to arrive before the premiere of Agatha: House of Harkness, hopefully more clues will arrive soon.
