How WandaVision's latest commercial is key to unlocking the Marvel multiverse
WandaVision's newest commercial break could be our way into the multiverse
Warning: the following contains spoilers for WandaVision episode 7, so turn back now if you haven’t seen the latest episode!
WandaVision episode 7 gave us plenty to think about, from Monica Rambeau finally getting superpowers to the catchy revelation that it was Agatha (Harkness) All Along. One thing that might have flown under your radar, though, is a major hint to the Marvel multiverse.
In the commercial break for the latest installment, a tablet called Nexus is advertised, said "to anchor you back to your reality. Or the reality of your choice." At first glance just a weird commercial for an antidepressant, it turns out there's a lot more to this tablet than meets the eye.
Nexus of All Realities
In Marvel comics, the Nexus, or the Nexus of All Realities, is a kind of crossroads. There, you can find your way into any reality that exists. It's the only space like it in the entire multiverse, which means it's the one point in existence where you can find every single reality overlapping. Man-Thing is one of its protectors, and in Reality 616 (the main reality) it mainly crops up in the Florida everglades.
If, as many are theorizing, WandaVision is crossing over into other realities – like with the appearance of the X-Men franchise's version of Pietro/Peter Maximoff – then it makes a lot of sense for this multiverse hub to come into play. Could Westview itself be the Nexus? There has to be a reason Wanda picked this tiny town in particular as her place to start a new life – if she even was the one to choose the spot, and it wasn't some sinister mind manipulation from Agnes.
Scarlet Witch
Wanda has a close association with the Nexus in Marvel comics. In fact, she's one of the "Nexus Beings" of Reality 616, meaning she can actually affect the timeline. So, mess with Wanda – or Wanda decides to mess with things herself – and there's a risk of disturbing the very fabric of reality. Other Nexus Beings in the same reality include Jean Grey-as-Phoenix, Franklin Richards (Reed's kid), and Kang. Also notable: the Time Variance Authority (who are set to appear in the Loki series) try to police the Nexus Beings, stopping them from causing too much trouble.
In the source material, Scarlet Witch has certain "hex" powers. One aspect of her abilities allows her to affect probability, described as "probability alteration". Put simply, Wanda can manipulate chance to cause extremely unlikely events to occur. Doesn't that sound familiar? As the Hex expanded to swallow up multiple SWORD agents, they turned into various circus inhabitants, like clowns. How unlikely is that?
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Essentially, Wanda's powers mean she can reshape reality into whatever she wants it to be – which is what seems to be happening in Westview.
In the Avengers West Coast comic series, the villainous Immortus – another name for Kang the Conquerer, due to make his MCU debut in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania – explains that Wanda "is a Nexus – one of those rare beings or objects that belong equally to all possible timelines – all potential realities!" (H/T Comic Book). Wanda acts as a fixed point, or an anchor – just what the Nexus pill is described as during the episode. "Nexus. Because the world doesn’t revolve around you. Or does it?" the commercial's voiceover asks. The world quite literally could revolve around Wanda if she's revealed to be a Nexus Being.
Different realities
If Westview is the Nexus of All Realities, or Wanda is a Nexus Being herself – or even both – then this could be crucial in understanding what exactly is happening in WandaVision. Considering Elizabeth Olsen has said there is a "natural progression" between the series and Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness, it seems very likely that we'll be seeing more of the multiverse in the last few episodes of the series. Could whatever reality-twisting is going down in Westview be the key to Spider-Man 3, too? We'll have to wait and see, but it's looking likely.
While you wait for episode 8 to drop next Friday, check out our guide to all the Westview inhabitants who might have connections to the comics for more to puzzle over.
I'm a Senior Entertainment Writer here at 12DOVE, covering all things film and TV for the site's Total Film and SFX sections. I previously worked on the Disney magazines team at Immediate Media, and also wrote on the CBeebies, MEGA!, and Star Wars Galaxy titles after graduating with a BA in English.