WandaVision may be super-popular right now, but do Marvel fans need to watch the Disney Plus series? New interviews with MCU head honcho Kevin Feige just gave us our answer.
And it makes sense that people want to know, because Feige himself has long said that WandaVision will tie into Sam Raimi's upcoming MCU film Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Also, Captain Marvel 2 is also on the calendar, and Teyonah Parris is reprising her role as Monica Rambeau in that film.
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Cinema Blend reports that Feige told the TCA that "there were lots of conversations with Sam Raimi and and Michael Waldron, and the entire Doctor Strange team, that this movie needs to work for people who watched WandaVision, but more importantly, needs to work for people who didn’t." So, there you have it, you don't need to have a familiarity with the happenings of Westview to "get" what's going on in the next Dr. Strange movie.
That being said, as any MCU fan knows, you'll probably follow the events a little closer (and understand some jokes) a bit better if you have watched WandaVision.
When Feige was asked if he had any concerns of fans not being familiar with Teyonah Parris' version of Monica Rambeau, he had a similar reply: "One thing I don’t worry about is more Teyonah Parris. I think that’s always a good thing. But it is very similar to movie-to-movie, honestly. We try to make the stories unfold in a way that if you are following along and have seen what has preceded it, you’ll be right up to speed. And more importantly, if you haven’t, you’ll be up to speed."'
So, in short: you'll understand what's going on with all the new faces in the next Marvel movies, no matter what.
Of course, the last time we saw Monica Rambeau in the MCU movies, she was an 11-year-old played by Akira Akbar. Presumably, there will be some way that Captain Marvel 2 quickly explains that this is the same woman who Captain Marvel met when she visited her friend Maria in the first movie. The conversation will likely be necessary, as we learned in WandaVision that Maria Rambeau passed away due to her cancer coming out of remission, while Monica had been "snapped" away by Thanos.
The question of how necessary Marvel shows are to the Marvel movies has long loomed overhead. Fans of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Marvel Netflix shows (Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage and the rest) may remember how those shows didn't really matter in the long run. But, hopefully, now that these shows are being made closer to the Marvel Studios family, there is more reason to expect interlinking continuity.
