Elizabeth Olsen Warns Future Marvel Stars Against Signing Multiple Movie Deals: ‘Just Give Them One’
Elizabeth Olsen has some words of wisdom for any actor thinking about adapting to play a Marvel superhero — warning them about multi-movie deals.
The 34-year-old WandaVision star – who recently took a posh walk in Los Angeles – has been a mainstay in the Marvel Universe since 2015, playing the Scarlet Witch in six movies and two streaming shows.
Based on all that experience, Olsen hit the road Happy Sad Confused podcast and told host Josh Horowitz how she would advise future superheroes.
Olsen said actors should only commit to one film in the beginning to maintain more control.
“I say give them one [movie],’ she said. “I think you have more control that way.”
Great advice: Elizabeth Olsen, 34, has some wise words for any actor thinking of adapting to play a Marvel superhero — warning them about multi-movie deals; Seen 2023
The Avengers: Endgame star went on to explain why it’s smarter to dip a toe in one movie than to jump with both feet.
She said, “If you’re like, let’s say, ‘Oh my God, this is the most fun I’ve ever had and I love this character so much, I want to do it again,’ you now have more creative control for the next one.’
Elizabeth has expressed her frustration at being contractually obligated to multiple Marvel movies in the past.
Talking to the New York Times last year, she alluded to missing out on big roles because they conflicted with her Marvel schedule.
“It took me away from the physical ability to do certain jobs that I thought were more in line with the things I enjoyed being a spectator,” said Olsen. “And this is I who am fairest.”
The lead actress admitted that one of these “certain jobs” was a role in The Lobster – The critically acclaimed 2015 surreal comedy by Yorgos Lanthimos.
Elaborating on her professional “frustration,” Elizabeth told the New York Times that she sacrificed passion projects for “job security.”
‘I started to feel frustrated,” she said. “I had this job security, but I lost these pieces that I felt were more part of my being. And the further away I got from that, the less I qualified for it.’
Ask Elizabeth: Based on all her experience, Olsen went on the Happy Sad Confused podcast and told host Josh Horowitz how she would advise a future superhero; Seen 2022
Don’t go all in: “I say, just give them one.” [movie],’ she said. ‘I think you have more control that way’; depicted in Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
Walk lightly: “If you’re like, let’s say, ‘Oh my God, this is the most fun I’ve ever had and I love this character so much, I want to do it again,’ you now have more creative control for next’; depicted in Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
Speaking from experience, the WandaVision star has been a mainstay in the Marvel Universe since 2015, playing the Scarlet Witch in six movies and two streaming shows; depicted in Captain America – Civil War (2016)
Once upon a time, it was common for actors to sign huge multi-movie deals with Marvel, with stars like Samuel L. Jackson agreeing to nine films upfront.
But those days are reportedly gone, as Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige told me The Hollywood Reporter in 2021.
Freed from her multi-movie obligations as the Scarlet Witch, Elizabeth has showcased her ample talents in a juicy new role outside the Marvel Universe.
She has received positive reviews for her portrayal of real-life killer Candy Montgomery in the limited Max series Love & Death, playing a churchgoing mother who would eventually pick up an ax and kill her boyfriend in 1980.