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Kathryn Hahn reprises her WandaVision role as Agatha Harkness in the spinoff series Agatha All Along.

The true identity of nosy next-door neighbor Agatha—played to perfection by Kathryn Hahn—was the big reveal of 2021's WandaVision, even inspiring a meta-jingle that went viral. Now Hahn is bringing the character back for her own standalone adventure with Agatha All Along. Based on the first trailer, it looks like a lot of dark, spooky fun, just in time for the Halloween season. The nine-episode series is one of the TV series in the MCU's Phase Five, coming on the heels of Secret Invasion, Loki S2, What If...? S2, and Echo.

(Spoilers for WandaVision below.)

WandaVision was set immediately after the events of Avengers: Endgame (but before Spider-Man: Far From Home), with newlyweds Wanda and Vision starting their married life in the town of Westview, New Jersey. Wacky hijinks ensued as the couple tried to lead a normal life while hiding their superpowers from their neighbors—especially Hahn's nosy Agnes. Each episode was shot in the style of a particular era of sitcom television, from the 1950s through the 2000s. The couple noticed more and more jarring elements—a full-color drone, a voice calling out to Wanda over the radio, neighbors briefly breaking character—hinting that this seemingly idyllic suburban existence might not be what it seemed.

We learned that a grief-stricken Wanda had inadvertently locked the entire town in a reality-warping Hex, with the residents forced to play their sitcom "roles" and adhere to Wanda's "script," creating the happily ever after ending she never got with Vision. But the hijinks weren't all due to Wanda's powers. Agnes turned out to be a powerful witch named Agatha Harkness, who had studied magic for centuries and was just dying to learn the source of Wanda's incredible power. Wanda's natural abilities were magnified by the Mind Stone, but Agatha realized that Wanda was a wielder of "chaos magic." She was, in fact, the Scarlet Witch. In the finale, Wanda trapped Agatha in her nosy neighbor persona while releasing the rest of the town.

Agatha All Along has been in the works since 2021, officially announced in November of that year. There were numerous title changes, culminating this May with my personal goofy favorite: Agatha: The Lying Witch with Great Wardrobe (a nod to C.S. Lewis). It briefly appeared on the Marvel Twitter account before being taken down, and Disney soon revealed that the various name changes were "orchestrated by [Harkness] as a way of messing with Marvel fans." Head writer Jac Schaeffer (who also created WandaVision) has said that the series would follow Agatha as she forms her own coven with "a disparate mixed bag of witches... defined by deception, treachery, villainy, and selfishness" who must learn to work together. And apparently we can expect a few more catchy tunes.

The darkness takes hold

Per the official premise:

The infamous Agatha Harkness finds herself down and out of power after a suspicious goth teen helps break her free from a distorted spell. Her interest is piqued when he begs her to take him on the legendary Witches’ Road, a magical gauntlet of trials that, if survived, rewards a witch with what they’re missing. Together, Agatha and this mysterious teen pull together a desperate coven, and set off down, down, down The Road…

In addition to Hahn, the cast includes Aubrey Plaza as warrior witch Rio Vidal; Joe Locke as Billy, a gay teenage familiar; Patti LuPone as a 450-year-old Sicilian witch named Lilia Calderu; Sasheer Zamata as sorceress Jennifer Kale; Ali Ahn as a witch named Alice; and Miles Gutierrez-Riley as Billy's boyfriend.

Debra Jo Rupp reprises her WandaVision role as Sharon Davis ("Mrs. Hart" in the meta-sitcom), here becoming a member of Agatha's coven. Also reprising their WandaVision roles: Emma Caulfield Ford as Sarah Proctor (aka "Dottie Jones"); David Payton as John Collins ("Herb"); David Lengel as Harold Proctor ("Phil Jones"); Asif Ali as Abilash Tandon ("Norm"); Amos Glick (pizza delivery man "Dennis"); Kate Forbes as Agatha's mother Evanora; and Brian Brightman as the Eastview, New Jersey, sheriff.

As the trailer opens, we see Agatha, still trapped in Wanda's spell, now in the role of a local detective, called to a crime scene in the woods with the body of a Jane Doe. It seems we're in a classic detective series this time (as opposed to sitcoms)—at least until Agatha's musings in the morgue are interrupted by Rio. "Is this really how you see yourself?" Rio asks. "That witch is gone, leaving you trapped in her distorted spell. Claw your way out." And Agatha does, flashing through her various WandaVision incarnations.

Agatha now longs for her glory days, bemoaning how Wanda "took every bit of power I had" and resolving to be the witch she once was again. That requires walking the witch's road, it seems, even though Lilia tells her the road is a "death wish." But Agatha won't be walking alone: she's got her new coven to travel with her. Sure, no right-thinking witch would join Agatha's coven, but fortunately, she's not looking for right-thinking witches. Spooky happenings abound as the darkness takes hold.

The first two episodes of Agatha All Along will premiere on September 18, 2024, on Disney+, with episodes airing weekly after that through November 6.

Altered opening credits for WandaVision featuring "Agatha All Along" theme song.

Jennifer Ouellette Senior Writer

Jennifer is a senior reporter at Ars Technica with a particular focus on where science meets culture, covering everything from physics and related interdisciplinary topics to her favorite films and TV series. Jennifer lives in Baltimore with her spouse, physicist Sean M. Carroll, and their two cats, Ariel and Caliban.

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