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Whatever life holds in store for me, I will never forget these words: "With great power comes great responsibility."
Spider-Man has declared that this article is still under construction. |
Background[]
Early life[]
| “ | Wanda and Pietro Maximoff, twins. Orphaned at ten when a shell collapsed on their apartment building. Sokovia has had a... rough history, it's nowhere special but it's on the way to everywhere special. | „ |
| ~ Maria Hill and Steve Rogers. |
Wanda Maximoff was born in the Eastern European country of Sokovia along with her brother, Pietro. At the age of ten, while having dinner with her family, a mortar shell hit their apartment building, killing Maximoff's parents and trapping her and her brother. A second shell hit the apartment near them but did not go off; the Maximoff twins were left trapped for two days staring at the unexploding shell reading the name on it, Stark Industries.
This traumatic experience gave the twins a great hatred for America, especially Tony Stark and later the Avengers. They often took part and led protests against the Avengers. They dedicated much of their lives to this hatred and began searching for ways to bring down the Avengers; this constant political activity put them on S.H.I.E.L.D.'s radar.
Joining HYDRA[]
| “ | There's nothing more horrifying than a miracle. | „ |
| ~ Baron Strucker on the Maximoff twins |
When the twins reached adulthood, Sokovia had become a warzone, with foreign forces invading their streets frequently. Wanda and her brother took part in various riots to drive the foreign forces out of their streets. What the twins did not realize was that the riots were orchestrated by HYDRA, who had taken up residence in the country and were using the riots to cover up their illegal experiments. One day, Wanda and Pietro were approached by List, a scientist at the HYDRA cell in Sokovia, who offered them the opportunity to achieve the power needed to drive war out of Sokovia. Initially skeptical, Wanda was convinced by Pietro to agree.
Along with other volunteers from the town, Wanda and Pietro underwent a series of tests where they were exposed to energy from the Scepter, which had fatal effects on the others. Wanda and Pietro, however, experienced exceedingly different effects. The power of the scepter unlocked latent supernatural powers within the pair; while Pietro achieved superhuman speed, Wanda attained several mental powers such as telekinesis, hypnosis, and energy projection.
Soon after, The Avengers arrived in Sokovia and raided Strucker's facility, stealing the scepter and arresting Strucker. In the confusion, Wanda and Pietro escaped from their holding cells and, though inexperienced, were able to use their powers to evade the Avengers and escape. Wanda herself used her powers to distract Iron Man, tricking him into believing that a dead Leviathan specimen that Strucker had been studying was still alive, and showing him a dark vision where the Avengers are dead and Leviathans invade Earth from a wormhole.
Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)[]
A Misguided Partnership[]
| “ | Ultron can't see the difference between saving the world and destroying it. Where do you think he gets that from? | „ |
| ~ Wanda about how Ultron's inability to see the difference, while referring to Stark. |
Wanda and Pietro were soon called by Ultron to join him in his plans to destroy the Avengers, knowing that with their powers, they can tear the opposition apart. Soon after, Wanda and Pietro accompany Ultron in acquiring Ulysses Klaue's supply of vibranium. Wanda manages to knock Captain America back with her powers and began "hexing" the minds of Thor, Black Widow, and the Cap. She attempted to "hex" Hawkeye but was subdued by him. Pietro saved her in the nick of time and took her outside Klaue's base, where she caught sight of the Hulk and manages to "hex" him as well.
Betraying Ultron and Becoming an Avenger[]
When the Twins arrived in Seoul, Wanda learned of Ultron's plans upon touching the Cradle and left the facility, much to Ultron's rage. The Twins then assisted Captain America in fighting off Ultron on a moving passenger train and Wanda managed to stop it when it went off the rails. Wanda and Pietro then accompanied Captain America back to Avengers Tower and tried to stop Stark and Banner from bringing Vision to life. Wanda was held back by Banner in the scuffle, but she managed to escape his hold, only to witness Thor bringing Vision to life. She reluctantly stood down as Vision introduced himself to them. She and Pietro then join the Avengers in stopping Ultron and saving Sokovia.
Battle of Sokovia[]
Wanda played a significant part in evacuating civilians from Sokovia, using her powers of mind control on dozens of innocents. When Ultron's army began their attack, Wanda tried to shield innocent civilians from enemy fire with her powers. Eventually, Ultron forced a large part of the city to levitate so that once it reached a certain height it would cause an extinction-level event once it made an impact with the earth. This, along with the carnage that was falling upon her home, overwhelmed Wanda.
Hawkeye told her that she needed to make a choice, to stay hidden and wait for her brother to take her somewhere safe or get out there and be an Avenger. When Clint was surrounded by Ultron's robots, Wanda made the save. Wanda was then taken by Pietro to help rally the civilians and assisted in escorting them to the transporters sent by Nick Fury. Then, she and the rest of the Avengers stood together in defending the drill that would activate Ultron's plans for extinction and managed to wipe out a majority of his forces.
Pietro's Death[]
| “ | (Ultron: Wanda. If you stay here, you'll die.) I just did. Do you know how it felt? It felt like that... | „ |
| ~ Wanda speaking to Ultron about her brother's death after ripping out his heart. |
After she pulled out his heart and smashed it, Wanda opted to stay behind to guard the key while the others went their separate ways to accomplish their objectives, making Pietro promise to come back for her when their mission is over. Unfortunately, Pietro was killed saving Clint Barton and a young boy from Ultron and Wanda senses this, causing her to cry out in pure anguish.
Wanda then left her post to avenge her brother by taking down Ultron's primary body with her powers, though she had inadvertently allowed an Ultron drone to activate the key that sent Sokovia plummeting towards Earth. Fortunately, Stark and Thor averted the cataclysm and Vision saved Wanda just in the nick of time.
The New Team[]
| “ | Avengers, A... | „ |
| ~ Captain America at the end of the Age of Ultron |
Wanda was recruited into the Avengers' roster along with War Machine, Vision, and Sam Wilson as a permanent member of the team. They arrived at the New Avengers Facility and began their training under the leadership of Captain America and Black Widow.
Captain America: Civil War (2016)[]
Lagos Catastrophe[]
| “ | (Captain America: Wanda, just like we practiced.) What about the gas? (Captain America: Get it out.) | „ |
Approximately a year after the Ultron Offensive, Scarlet Witch joined her fellow Avengers in tracking down Crossbones and his mercenaries to Lagos, Nigeria, who was planning to attack the Institute for Infectious Diseases and steal a biochemical weapon. They immediately rushed towards the IFID, with Captain America arrived first on the scene, followed by Falcon and Scarlet Witch. Scarlet Witch lifted Captain America onto the third floor to subdue Crossbones and used her powers to vent the anesthetic gas out into the open air.
Falcon and Black Widow managed to neutralize the mercenaries and secure the biochemical weapon that Crossbones and his mercenaries had obtained while they tried to escape through a busy marketplace. Captain America and Crossbones fought intensely before Captain America managed to disarm and subdue Crossbones. Rumlow taunted Captain America and claimed that the Winter Soldier had hired him to stead the biochemical weapon, once again under HYDRA mind control. Suddenly, Rumlow pulled the cord on his suicide vest to kill both him and Captain America. Scarlet Witch managed to shield the explosion around Rumlow and tried to move the blast away, but inadvertently destroyed a nearby building and killing many of its occupants, much to her horror.
Sokovia Accords[]
House Arrest[]
| “ | (Steve Rogers) Wanda? What about Wanda? (Tony Stark) She's fine. She's confined to the compound, currently. Vision's keeping her company. (Rogers) Oh, God, Tony. Every time. Every time I think you see things the right way... (Stark) What? It's 100 acres with a lap pool. It's got a screening room. There's worse ways to protect people. (Rogers) Protection? Is that how you see this? This is protection? It's internment, Tony. (Stark) She's not a US citizen. And they don't grant visas to Weapons of Mass Destruction. (Rogers) Oh, come on, Tony. She's a kid! (Stark) Give me a break! | „ |
| ~ Steve Rogers and Tony Stark argue about Wanda Maximoff's current situation in the ordeal. |
The Avengers returned to the New Avengers Facility, where Wanda still was filled with guilt over the deaths caused by the explosion. When the Sokovia Accords were introduced to the Avengers, Wanda was unsure at the time whether she should sign or not. After the other Avengers left to deal with the Winter Soldier, Wanda was left under the watch of the Vision. He tried to cook her something to lift her spirits, though failed due to the fact he doesn't eat. The two Avengers have a heart-to-heart talk but when Wanda tries to leave the facility, Vision stops her, telling her the Tony Stark charged him with ensuring she didn't leave the compound until the debate with the Accords had cooled.
Later, Steve Rogers sent Clint Barton to retrieve Wanda. Barton created a distraction for Vision and tried to talk Wanda into leaving with him. Vision returned and easily overpowered Barton, but Wanda used her powers to free him and increased Vision's density, blasting him many meters beneath the facility and left with Barton.
Clash of the Avengers[]
- "Wanda, I think you hurt Vision's feelings."
- You locked me in my room."
- ―Iron Man and Scarlet Witch
Maximoff and Clint Barton retrieved Scott Lang and then the three met up with Steve Rogers, Sam Wilson, and Bucky Barnes in Germany, where they were ambushed by Iron Man and his allies. Maximoff used her powers to assist her teammates, stopping enemy blows and throwing vehicles. As she used her powers to stop a falling watchtower from cutting off Rogers and Barnes' escape, James Rhodes used a sonic weapon to knock her out. Vision went to check on her, but this act distracted him causing him to accidentally strike Rhodes out of the sky.
Imprisonment[]
Maximoff and the other heroes aligned with Steve Rogers were arrested and taken to the Raft, where she was outfitted with a shock collar and put in a straitjacket to prevent her from using her powers. Tony Stark visited the prison and saw her in captivity. However, Rogers broke into the Raft and freed Maximoff and the others.
Avengers: Infinity War (2018)[]
In 2018, Wanda and Vision have begun a romantic relationship while living off the grid in Edinburgh. They are ambushed by Proxima Midnight and Corvus Glaive, members of the Children of Thanos sent to retrieve the Mind Stone. Rogers, Romanoff, and Wilson rescue them and take them to the Avengers Compound, meeting with Rhodes and Banner. Vision asks Wanda to destroy the Stone, but she refuses. Rogers suggests they travel to Wakanda, which he believes has the resources to remove the Stone without destroying Vision. As Shuri works to extract the Mind Stone from Vision, Wanda is tasked to stay and watch over Vision until the Stone is out. After the Outriders invade and overwhelm the Avengers on the battlefield, Wanda leaves her post to help her teammates, also killing Proxima Midnight. She witnesses the arrival of Thanos and is forced to destroy the Mind Stone and Vision, but her efforts are rendered all for naught as Thanos uses the Time Stone to reverse her actions, and rips the repaired Mind Stone from Vision's forehead, killing him. Thanos knocks out a horrified Wanda and activates the completed Infinity Gauntlet, snaps his fingers, and Wanda disintegrates while holding on to Vision's corpse.
Avengers: Endgame (2019)[]
| “ | (Scarlet Witch) You took everything from me. (Thanos) I don't even know who you are. (Scarlet Witch) You will. | „ |
| ~ Scarlet Witch confronting Thanos. |
Battle of Earth and Funeral of Tony Stark[]
In 2023, Wanda is brought back to life along with everyone else dusted in the Snap, and is brought along with everyone else who participated in the Battle of Wakanda to the destroyed Avengers Compound to join the final battle against an alternate Thanos. Wanda confronts him directly, being the first one in the battle to successfully overpower Thanos one-on-one. After breaking Thanos's double bladed sword, she levitates him into the air and begins tearing him apart from the inside out, and he is only able to escape her hold by ordering an indiscriminate bombardment of the battlefield with missiles from Sanctuary II.
Later in the battle, Wanda and the other female Avengers assist Carol Danvers as she tries to transport the Infinity Guantlet across the battlefield to the quantum tunnel, taking out a portion of Thanos' army and a Leviathan. This proves unsuccessful as Thanos destroys the tunnel, though Thanos and his army are ultimately defeated when Tony snaps them out of existence at the expense of his own life. After the battle, Wanda attends Tony's funeral and reunites with Barton, where they comfort each other over the deaths of Vision and Romanoff.
WandaVision (2021)[]
Shortly after Tony's funeral, Wanda finds out that Vision's body was obtained by S.W.O.R.D. and visits their headquarters in coastal New Jersey to retrieve it. After meeting with S.W.O.R.D acting director Tyler Hayward, she is shown Vision being experimented on, and realizes she can no longer sense him. She drives to the suburban town of Westview to view a vacant lot Vision purchased for the two "to grow old in" prior to the battle of Wakanda. Overcome with grief, Wanda accidentally unleashes waves of chaos magic that transforms Westview into a sitcom-themed false reality, cut off from the outside world by a hexagonal barrier. She materializes a new version of Vision that lacks any prior memories and starts living in the Hex, where she and Vision are newly-married and try to live their ideal suburban life.
A week later, Wanda attempts to befriend her neighbors while occasionally needing to conceal her and Vision's powers. She soon becomes visibly pregnant. As Wanda's pregnancy progresses, she encounters Monica Rambeau, who has been absorbed by the Hex and given the new name "Geraldine". Monica helps Wanda give birth to twin boys Tommy and Billy. However, during the subsequent conversation, when Wanda mentions Pietro, Monica brings up his death at the hands of Ultron. Noticing Monica's S.W.O.R.D pendant, Wanda grows furious and casts her out of Westview. When Vision returns moments later, he appears as a corpse before Wanda resets him.
As Wanda's children age rapidly, S.W.O.R.D. sends a drone into Westview and Hayward attempts to kill Wanda by firing a missile at her. Enraged, Wanda exits the Hex, warns Hayward to leave her alone, and emphasizes her point by mind-controlling Hayward's men to turn their guns on him. Monica, who empathizes with Wanda on account of finding out her mother Maria died while she was dusted, tries to offer help, but is rebuffed by Wanda. Back in Westview, Wanda gets into a heated argument with Vision when he finds out the truth about the false reality thanks to reading a S.W.O.R.D communique at work. The argument is interrupted when a man claiming to be her brother Pietro appears. During the town's Halloween festival, Wanda reveals to "Pietro" that she doesn't know what happened to her, except that she felt alone and empty, which seemingly made her create the Hex. When Wanda learns that Vision has breached the hexagonal barrier and is dying, she expands the Hex to save his life, in the process also absorbing the S.W.O.R.D camp and Darcy Lewis into the Hex.
Due to expanding the Hex, Wanda starts losing control of it and is surprised to see Monica again in Westview, who attempts to warn her about Hayward, as she's discovered evidence that Hayward intends to revive Vision as a weapon. Before they can talk any further, Wanda's neighbor "Agnes" interrupts them and takes Wanda to her house, only to lure her into an underground demonic lair where she reveals her true identity as the sorceress Agatha Harkness. Agatha puts Wanda under a trance, leading Wanda through her past. She is forced to relive her memories of trauma and what she had lost throughout her life from her parents' death, her brother's death, Vision, and her new home at the Avengers Compound. Agatha releases her from the trance and Wanda leaves her house, only to find Agatha holding Tommy and Billy captive on the street. Agatha mocks Wanda for not knowing the full extent of her own abilities before revealing that her powers are actually chaos magic, which makes Wanda the mythical "Scarlet Witch", capable of creation from nothing and weaving together numerous high-level spells that then run automatically, all unconsciously.
Wanda attacks Agatha, who reveals that her ability is absorbing magical power, and frees Tommy and Billy. Wanda is then attacked by the reactivated real Vision, who has been sent by Hayward to kill her as a loose end, but Wanda's Hex "Vision" fends him off. She goes into Westview's town square and is attacked by Agatha, who informs her about a chapter in the Darkhold devoted to her, and states that she is even more powerful than the Sorcerer Supreme, and can destroy the world as the "Harbinger of Chaos". Agatha then frees the Westview residents from the spell, allowing them to reveal to Wanda that her spell has been causing them to share all her repressed grief and nightmares.
Overwhelmed by the residents demanding answers, Wanda accidentally loses control of her powers and chokes them. Horrified at the realization of what she has done, Wanda starts bringing down the Hex to free the townspeople, but restores it when Hex Vision, Tommy, and Billy start fading away.
S.W.O.R.D. agents and Hayward infiltrate Westview, and after Agatha attacks some of them, Wanda saves them, and pursues Agatha on top of a building. There, Wanda tries to trap Agatha in a hallucination of 1693 Salem, but it backfires. Agatha breaks free from the hallucination and Wanda blasts her, but Agatha retaliates by absorbing her magic energy and life force. Taking the fight into the sky, Agatha attempts to kill Wanda, but finds that her powers no longer work. It turns out that Wanda imprinted protection runes on the boundaries of the Hex, rendering Agatha's magic powerless. Wanda ultimately claims her true identity as the Scarlet Witch, and imprisons Agatha in Westview as "Agnes" after informing her that she would be back if she needs her. She takes down the Hex and tearfully says goodbye to Tommy, Billy, and Hex Vision. Standing in the empty house lot, she walks into the town square and meets with a sympathetic Monica. Wanda apologizes for the pain she has caused and vows to better understand her powers. She and Monica say goodbye and Wanda flies away from Westview, fleeing to live remotely in a mountainside cabin in Sokovia. There she studies the Darkhold to learn more about her powers.