In a way, Elizabeth Olsen has been practicing being a perfect 1960s housewife since she was a child. The 32-year-old tells Grazia USA that filming the episodes of her new show WandaVision that mimic American sitcoms was a huge highlight of the process for her. And don’t worry, if you have no idea what any of those words mean, you will still be able to appreciate the show, a miniseries on Disney Plus based on the Marvel Comics characters Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch and Vision. I also did not have a previous knowledge of characters or their context in the Marvel Universe but what I did appreciate was the show’s fresh take on being a “sitcom wife.”
Olsen told Grazia USA that while growing up, she didn’t watch much TV during the day, but she was a huge fan of Nick at Nite. “We’ve revealed this on the show but the entire thing is not fully a sitcom,” Olsen explained. “The highlight was really getting to tell a story about these superhero individuals told in different decades of American sitcoms. You know, trying to match the tone of those sitcoms in order to help forward the story or adjust who the characters are and how they identify themselves and their personalities. It was so playful and so fun.”
The series sees the couple—aptly named Wanda and Vision—travel through the decades, parodying many classic TV shows in the process. It’s understood that every 30-minute episode will resemble a vintage US sitcom and even though the viewer can tell there is somewhat of an underlying sadness, there is a definite joy during the sitcom episodes .
“WandaVision has somehow mastered the art of playing in the sitcom space while still calling out the sexism that very much existed at the time and in these shows we hold so dear,” a writer for The Mary Sue (an entertainment website billed as ‘geek girl’s guide to the universe.’) describes how the show is able to avoid falling into old gender tropes. “Under the guise of Wanda and Vision being an ‘unusual’ couple, the show lets their dynamic thrive by placing those sexist aspects on other couples or in the ‘commercials’ that litter the episodes.” WandaVision shows just how ridiculous and sexist those sitcom narratives actually were.
Olsen is the star of her own show, and as a housewife and stay-at-home mother, it’s truly refreshing.
