Doctor Strange 2 Elizabeth Olsen Wants You To Disagree With Wanda

“It was so fun for me because all these years I’ve been playing a character who is struggling,” Olsen explained to Harper’s Bazaar UK. “Now, she has clarity for the first time — she knows exactly what she wants, and she doesn’t want to apologize for it.” Olsen continued, “I think there’s a womanliness that comes with that: a strength in feeling completely entitled.” However, Wanda’s morally ambiguous multiverse-jumping plan (which also, spoilers, has to do with sucking the life out of supernatural teen America Chavez, played by Xochitl Gomez) is the crux of the Sam Raimi-helmed sequel.

“I love playing characters whose actions people disagree with,” Olsen continued. “In a world where we don’t really care to understand other points of view, I feel like if we as an audience can have empathy for people we don’t agree with, that’s a good thing. Then I can kind of be their lawyer and defend them. I get behind their actions, even if I don’t agree with them.” And although Wanda’s story seems to find an emotional conclusion of sorts — “I think Wanda’s always around the corner, so I don’t feel bad saying goodbye to her,” Olsen added — the actress is continuing the theme of playing morally murky characters. Upcoming HBO true crime series “Love and Death” has Olsen transform into real-life alleged axe murderer Candy Montgomery. “I adored playing her,” Olsen said. “People would ask: ‘Are you going to play her as a sociopath?’ And I was like, ‘No, why would I do that? I’m going to try and understand how someone would be able to compartmentalize this until they were caught.” Olsen previously explained that since “Doctor Strange 2” director Raimi did not finish watching “WandaVision,” she stepped in to help shape Wanda’s arc. “There was this thread I was trying to pull on ‘WandaVision,’” Olsen told The Independent. To Harper’s, Olsen revealed it was just her producing prowess coming through. “I’m addicted to it; and when I’m not even producing, I pretend I am — I’m probably awful to work with! I say ‘awful’, but people say that it’s fine,” Olsen joked. “But I really overstep as an actor. I want to know about full plans.” And those full plans include knowing that any MCU installment she stars in won’t be a “flop.” Due to her anxiety over audience reactions at premieres, Olsen admitted she still hasn’t seen “Doctor Strange 2” yet but will “at some point.” Good thing the film is estimated to reach at least $300 million at the box office opening weekend, thanks to a record high amount of presale tickets.