WandaVision Showrunner Explains How Monica Rambeau, Jimmy Woo, and Darcy Lewis Joined the Series

WandaVision may have started out as a showcase for stars Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany, but it [...]

By Spencer Perry

WandaVision may have started out as a showcase for stars Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany, but it has turned into a regular Who's who of connective tissue to the larger Marvel Cinematic Universe. Last week's episode of the series brought back Randall Park as FBI Agent Jimmy Woo, last seen in Ant-Man and the Wasp, plus Kat Dennings as Darcy Lewis, not seen in the MCU since Thor: The Dark World in 2013. Furthermore the series brought in actress Teyonah Parris to play the adult version of Monica Rambeau, previously seen as a child in Captain Marvel (2019). But not all of them were

In a new interview the series' headwriter has revealed which of these was added later and who was around from the very beginning. "There was a character like Monica; she served the purpose of Monica in my pitch," showrunner Jac Schaeffertold Screen Rant. "But it was a later discovery that we could use Monica Rambeau for that character. And that was so exciting when we put those pieces together. Jimmy and Darcy were always part of the story." In the end they were probably very happy to have figured out they could incorporate Monica Rambeau into the series since Parris will reprise her role in the upcoming Captain Marvel 2.

Schaeffer also opened up about moments if improv on set versus sticking strictly to the script. Naturally the sitcom elements stuck heavily to what was on the page, but the scenes with Jimmy and Darcy ended up being a little more up for interpretation for the actors.

"Kat and Randall both are skilled comedians, so we would discuss ways to plus lines and plus character moments," Schaeffer added. "An early part of a different draft had Jimmy Woo doing that thing where he accidentally overshares. When Randall saw that script, he flagged that as something that he really liked and felt was really true to Jimmy, so then it became a runner because Randall liked it so much. Similar things with Kat. Kat can make anything funny, so whatever was on the page, she would just make funny."

As this week's episode of the series proved, Schaeffer was right, Kat Dennings makes everything funny.

WandaVision's first five episodes are now streaming on Disney+ with new episodes dropping on Friday mornings at 3 AM EST / 12 AM PT. If you haven't signed up for Disney+ yet, you can try it out here.

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