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Agatha All Along got you wondering how magic works in the MCU? Here's your guide to Marvel's many on-screen magicians

Beyond Agatha Harkness, who else dabbles in a bit of magic in the on-screen world of Avengers, Defenders, and mythical figures?

Agatha Harkness in WandaVision
Image credit: Marvel Studios

With Agatha All Along debuting on Disney+, magic has never been in greater focus within the MCU. Sure, scientists have long been at the core of the MCU thanks to characters like Tony Stark, Bruce Banner, Hank Pym, and Jane Foster, but with Agatha Harkness and her coven of misfits taking center stage, it's finally time that Marvel's magic-users get their due. In case you're wondering who these folks are, and what their deal is, read on. Magic lore in the MCU is about to get a lot bigger. 

Agatha Harkness

Agatha Harkness in WandaVision
Image credit: Marvel Studios

Agatha is not messing around. While she currently has no magical powers thanks to Wanda Maximoff - you did see the end of WandaVision, right...? - she embarks on a quest to get them back in Agatha All Along. It was Agatha who first learned that Wanda was capable of chaos magic, and attempted to steal Wanda's powers for herself. She did not succeed... but that doesn't mean that she isn't dangerous in her own right, even depowered.

Evanora Harkness

A still of Evanora Harkness in WandaVision
Image credit: Marvel Studios
 

Evanora Harkness was Agatha's mother and the leader of the Salemites - a coven of witches based in, you guessed it, Salem, Massachusetts in the late 1600s. As you can imagine, being a witch in Salem at that time did not go so well for Evanora and her coven. When the Salemites tried to hold Agatha accountable for her practice of dark magic, Agatha killed all of them, including Evanora. (Remember what we said about Agatha being dangerous?)

Scarlet Witch (Wanda Maximoff)

Scarlet Witch Classic Costume Look
Image credit: Marvel Studios

Even beyond her time with the Avengers, Wanda had a lot going on. When she was exposed to Loki's scepter, which housed the Mind Stone, it unlocked powers in her such as telekinesis, energy manipulation, and limited telepathy. However, it has also been revealed that Wanda has access to chaos magic - a girl's gotta have hobbies - and can manipulate reality. This is how she was able to entrap the entire town of Westview in WandaVision in her own fantasy world based on classic U.S. sitcoms. 

We likely haven't seen the full extent of Wanda's powers yet... but there's still time, despite her apparent death in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. No less an authority than Doctor Stephen Strange said she was "one of the most powerful magic-wielders on the planet," in that same movie, so we'll defer to him on that one. (She's definitely powerful enough to fake her death, if she wanted, at least...) 

Doctor Strange

Image Courtesy Marvel Studios (Spider-Man: No Way Home trailer)
Image credit: Image Courtesy Marvel Studios (Spider-Man: No Way Home trailer)

While you were out partying, Doctor Strange was studying the mystic arts. After Dr. Stephen Strange injured his hands in a car accident, he sought to uncover a new form of power through the mystic arts. He was instructed by a rather youthful-looking Ancient One in Kamar-Taj, and uses magic primarily through spellcasting. Doctor Strange is hardly ever seen without his trusty sidekick, the Cloak of Levitation, which not only allows him to fly, but also seemingly has a mind (and personality) of its own. 

In Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Strange cast a spell that allowed him to possess and reanimate his own corpse from another universe. This is called Dreamwalking, and is a forbidden practice relegated to the Darkhold, a mystical tome that contains access to all kinds of dangerous magic. The Darkhold was sought out by Wanda Maximoff before being seemingly destroyed, but... well... magic

The Ancient One

 

A still of Tilda Swinton as the Ancient One in Doctor Strange
Image credit: Marvel Studios

The Ancient One is, as her name suggests, rather old. She was the Sorcerer Supreme when Stephen Strange first met her, and she showed him the wonders of the Astral Plane. She died in the first Doctor Strange movie, although that didn't go quite as straightforwardly as one might expect; she actually manipulated time to hang about in her "astral form" after her body died, just to ensure that things went the right way. 

Wong

A still of Wong in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
Image credit: Marvel Studios
 

Wong is the current Sorcerer Supreme, and the world is a better place for it. Unlike Doctor Strange, Wong has deep ties to other magic-users at Kamar-Taj, bringing them into the final battle of Avengers: Endgame. From that, we can infer that Wong is a popular member of whatever groupchat Kamar-Taj has going on. He's also, as anyone who watched She-Hulk: Attorney-at-Law is already well aware of, no stranger to unexpected compatriots - training with the Abomination to become a better Sorcerer Supreme, or decompressing with some quality viewing time with Madisynn King. He might not be as well-known or as traditionally heroic as Stephen Strange, but he also might be a better magic user.

Baron Mordo

Chiwetel Ejiofor as Baron Mordo in Doctor Strange
Image credit: Marvel Studios
 

Baron Mordo was perhaps Doctor Strange's greatest hater when he was studying at Kamar-Taj. Like Doctor Strange, he's got his own magical fashion item, the Vaulting Boots of Valtorr. With these boots, he can walk on air and jump unusually far. We all could use a pair. (Worth pointing out: when last seen, Mordo was attempting to become the most powerful magic user in the MCU by killing everyone else and stealing their abilities. He's not been seen in years, so... I wonder how that's going for him?)

Dormammu

Dormammu in Doctor Strange
Image credit: Marvel Studios

Dormammu was a nasty entity from the Dark Dimension, and can be summoned to Earth using the Book of Cagliostro. Thanks to his origins in the Dark Dimension, Dormammu's full power is beyond human comprehension, and he can use his power to extend the lives of whomever he chooses. He has long been an enemy of the Masters of the Mystic Arts, which warrants him a place on this list. 

Kaecilius

Mads Mikkelsen as Kaecilius in Doctor Strange
Image credit: Marvel Studios

Mads Mikkelsen, we miss you and your makeup that looks straight out of The Crow. Kaecilius was the former protege of The Ancient One, whose lust for power drove him to become villainous. Like many of us humans, Kaecilius wasn't a fan of dying, but unlike the rest of us, he sought out horrifying magical ways to overcome death. This led him to summon Dormammu with the help of the Book of Cagliostro... and, in a supreme irony, escape death by existing eternally in the Dark Dimension but not exactly as... well, a fully living person. Magic is complicated, and also nasty.

Clea

Who is Clea, and what kind of magic user is she? We'll have to wait for a future Marvel project to find out for sure, but we know she's out there, after Charlize Theron popped up playing the niece of Dormammu (and therefore sorceress from the Dark Dimension) in the end credit sequence from Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness...

Iron Fist

Finn Jones as Iron Fist
Image credit: Marvel Television

Don't expect to see Danny Rand to be waving his arms around doing some magic dance moves any time soon. Iron Fist is not a spellcaster. He is, however, able to fight as a living weapon thanks to punching out the heart of a dragon called Shou-Lao. It's fair to say that most people don't get superpowers from punching just any ol' dragon heart, so there's something magical going on with Iron Fist... but would he be upset at being included on this list? And if so, would we be in danger for doing so...? 

Loki

Loki is the God of Mischief, and it's a name he lives up to. He has the ability to shapeshift into non-humanoid creatures like a snake (as Thor recounts in Thor: Ragnarok), or into other humanoids like Odin. 

Frigga

Rene Russo as Frigga in Thor
Image credit: Marvel Studios

Unfortunately, Frigga doesn't have a ton of screen time in the MCU, but she did reveal a significant detail about her upbringing in Avengers: Endgame. When 2023 Thor traveled back in time to Asgard in 2013, Frigga was able to pick up on the fact that this version of her son was from the future. She lovingly informs him that she was "raised by witches," and that she "sees with more than eyes." Shall we consider her one of the more powerful magic figures in the MCU? Yes, we shall.

 Xu Wenwu (and, by implication, Shang-Chi)

 

Tony Leung as Xu Wenwu in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
Image credit: Marvel Studios

You don't want to mess with Xu Wenwu, the dude has lived through things beyond human comprehension. With the Ten Rings, Wenwu became immortal and had the ability to defeat entire armies on his own. While he was eventually defeated by his son, Shang-Chi, the Ten Rings still remain a potent magical force in the MCU.

How many of these magic users will show up throughout Agatha All Along? That remains to be seen, but as Agatha Harkness continues to do whatever is necessary to regain her powers, everything feels like it could be up for grabs - and Marvel does like to include some unexpected cameos when you least expect it.

New episodes of Agatha All Along debut on Disney+ every Wednesday.


Turns out, it was New York Comic Con all along – as the place to meet Wanda and Vision themselves, Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany! Limited Thursday NYCC 2024 tickets are still on sale, and then make sure to scoop your Photo Op with them for bragging rights on the ‘gram. 

Jules Chin Greene

Jules Chin Greene: Jules Chin Greene is a journalist and Jack Kirby enthusiast. He has written about comics, video games, movies, and television for sites such as Nerdist, AIPT, Multiverse of Color, and Screen Rant.

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