Oh it's an ever so exciting time for fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. If we're being honest, it's always an exciting time to be a fan of the franchise, but whenever there is a major, potentially game-changing movie or TV series on the horizon, that is more true than ever - because you never know what kind of surprises you're going to get from the projects.
We saw it with Deadpool and Wolverine as that film housed a number of surprise cameos and returns that we weren't expecting (and yet were completely ready for). In the weeks and months leading up to it, rumors were aplenty and comebacks were inevitable, as MCU fans investigated to see if their best theories were true. We saw it even more-so with 2021's Spider-Man: No Way Home, too.
But the fan theories and rumors are never more rampant than they are leading up to an Avengers movie. And we have two of those game-changing spectacles on the horizon in the form of Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars. The first of those films will seemingly have a number of major characters attached to it, but there is one return that it will pretty clearly feature at this point. And with another report once against supporting this comeback theory, let's take a look at why fans are convinced it will happen.
All the evidence that Elizabeth Olsen's Scarlet Witch will appear in Avengers: Doomsday
It's looking like Elizabeth Olsen really might be returning to the Marvel Cinematic Universe in Avengers: Doomsday to reprise her role of Wanda Maximoff, a.k.a. the Scarlet Witch. We reported last week that, after months of rumors and speculation, industry publication Production Weekly listed the 2026 film as one of the titles that will commence production in the coming months and included what looks like a cast list for the movie. That cast list mentions Olsen by name, alongside a list of other actors who have already been confirmed to appear in the movie.
As always, it's important to note that, while Production Weekly can be a reliable source, it isn't always right, so there is always the chance that it has just assumed that Olsen will appear in the movie given that her return is looking extremely likely at this point. But it is one of the most convincing pieces of evidence of that MCU comeback, and it's not the only piece of evidence to suggest as much either.
Veteran Marvel scooper MyTimeToShineHello has also claimed that Olsen will star in both Avengers: Doomsday and its 2027 sequel Avengers: Secret Wars. They have claimed as much for the past year, but they have once again taken to social media to support the recent rumors of her return, reiterating that she's set to play a major role in at least one of those movies.
Meanwhile, the real moment when fans started to believe that Wanda's return was on the cards was when Marvel Studios' own president Kevin Feige implied that the character would make a comeback at some point during an interview ahead of D23 Brazil, once again inciting excitement and rumors about when that could be. This Production Weekly casting appears to be the biggest confirmation since then, and one that fans have been waiting for.
Olsen earned an Emmy nomination for her performance as Wanda Maximoff, a.k.a. the Scarlet Witch, in 2021's WandaVision but she has been a fixture of the franchise's stories since her debut in 2015's Avengers: Age of Ultron. Wanda officially took up the mantle of the Scarlet Witch after her battle with witch Agatha Harkness in WandaVision awakened her full powers. It was very much the storyline that audiences had been waiting for the character to get, and it also highlighted that she would be an important part of the Multiverse Saga.
While that was true, Wanda seemingly died in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness after her use of the Darkhold took her down a very grim path. In search of variants of her sons, Billy and Tommy Maximoff, from another universe, she attempted to kill America Chavez and use her powers to travel across the multiverse to find them and become their mother. When she eventually saw what she had become, she brought Mount Wundagore down on herself and vowed that the Darkhold would never hurt anyone ever again.
The film implied that Wanda's sacrifice resulted in her death, but 2024 WandaVision spinoff Agatha All Along once again leaned into the ambiguity surrounding that supposed death. Her real son, Billy Maximoff, a.k.a. Wiccan, is now in search of his twin brother Tommy (ironically with the help of Agatha Harkness) and that has once again led fans to question if Wanda truly is dead.
Taking all of that into account, it is pretty clear that the plan was never to kill her off but simply to create an opportunity for her to return. We'll have to wait and see if the Scarlet Witch will be officially confirmed for an appearance in the upcoming Avengers movies, but based on the mounting evidence of Elizabeth Olsen's inevitable return, it is a forgone conclusion at this point.