Why Scarlet Witch's Accent Changed So Much Going Into WandaVision, According To Elizabeth Olsen

Elizabeth Olsen in Wandavision

WandaVision is our latest look into the world of Marvel, and while it’s an exciting one….well, it’s not a very clear one. Actually, no one knows what’s going on. At this point, we have way more questions than answers. Why are our heroes trapped in a TV world? Who put them there? Why is everyone being so sketchy? What is Vision even doing there? I mean, it’s awesome to see him, but didn’t he die in Infinity War? These questions will have to wait to be answered in upcoming episodes, but the mystery of Wanda’s disappearing Sokovian accent has been addressed by Scarlet Witch actress Elizabeth Olsen.

We’ve only really heard a strong Sokovian accent from Wanda when her origins are mentioned in the show, otherwise she sounds like a regular, perfect sitcom housewife. In an interview with Collider, Elizabeth Olsen addresses the lack of accent in WandaVision, saying that everything they are doing in the series is done for a reason, and assures viewers that the accent isn’t gone. In Olsen’s own words:

So, the Sokovia accent was created by me and Aaron and our dialect coach because it’s a fake country and we could find different sources of Slavic sounds. And we wanted to make sure it didn’t sound Russian because Black Widow speaks Russian, and so we just needed to sound more like Slovakian. So we created these sound changes that worked for Aaron’s British accent going to Slovakia basically and my American accent so that we sounded related. And then all of a sudden, all these different characters had to speak it in different films. [Laughs.] So the Sokovian accent took a lot of time. It hasn’t gone anywhere. There have been reasons for everything. It lightened up when she started living in the States, and in WandaVision she is playing the role of being in an American sitcom and so it’s not gone. It is absolutely still there.

While she doesn’t seem to be giving much away, Elizabeth Olsen does sort of confirm that Wanda is knowingly playing a role. This gives a little more credit to the theory that Wanda is the one controlling what happens in WandaVision, which would also explain why Vision is there if we are indeed post Endgame.

The lack of her normal accent while in this strange state does coincide with the idea that Wanda is just putting on an American accent, which also makes sense with her foreign origins, even though her country of origin is fictional. Wanda would still likely grow up with and be familiar with older American sitcoms as they were popular in other countries, and possibly all she could watch of U.S. TV if she grew up poor or in a secluded environment.

We’re all confused, but loving it. WandaVision is only on Episode 3 of 9 so there is plenty of time for things to clear up. New episodes are released to Disney+ every Friday, and will hopefully give some answers that we are all starving for. Stay tuned - CinemaBlend will be right back with updates on WandaVision.

Carlie Hoke
Content Writer

Constantly thinking about books, coffee, and the existential dread I feel from Bo Burnham’s Inside.  While writing I’m also raising a chaotic toddler, who may or may not have picked up personality traits from watching one too many episodes of Trailer Park Boys.