Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver might be mutants, implies new MCU book
It’s possible the twins could have been mutants all along
A new book, titled The Wakanda Files, is packed with fun facts about the MCU, and it’s got some interesting suggestions about Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver.
As reported by Screen Rant, the book is a collection of Shuri’s research, thoughts, and theories – and, while looking into the Infinity Stones, she apparently found out something pretty important about Sokovia, the country seen falling out of the sky in Avengers: Age of Ultron.
While researching Hydra, Shuri discovered the real reason the nefarious organisation worked in Sokovia. Apparently, Hydra found some genetic oddities among the inhabitants of the country, which made them ideal candidates for experiments with the Mind Stone. This mention of genetics definitely suggests that Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver’s powers were innate in some way – and the experiments just activated the potential already within them.
In the comics, mutants have an ‘X-gene’ which gives them their powers, so it’s hard not to notice the similarities between the twins' genetics and the X-Men. Plus, there’s the fact that Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver are Magneto’s children in the comics – and in Fox’s X-Men franchise, Quicksilver (played by Evan Peters rather than Aaron Taylor-Johnson) is actually confirmed to be Magneto’s son.
Disney’s acquisition of 20th Century Fox makes the introduction of the mutants to the MCU much more likely, and this information is a good sign that the X-Men could be on their way.
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The Wakanda Files goes into a bit of detail about Scarlet Witch’s abilities: "The Stone similarly transformed her nervous system, but it has ionized and charged it in ways that have given her an extraordinary ability. Neural-electric interfacing allows her to create bursts of extreme energy using only her mind and the tips of her fingers. The manipulation of this energy permits her short bursts of levitation, in addition to a staggering weapon that only requires her bare hands.”
Most interesting, though, is what the book has to say about Scarlet Witch’s mind-bending powers: "What is beguiling is how Wanda's nervous system has also unlocked potential for telekinesis. These are not parlor tricks; she is not just bending spoons. She can manipulate minds and plant suggestive thoughts, even enhance preexisting paranoias. She can see into the mind of a human, find out what they fear and what will motivate them."
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This makes Scarlet Witch’s powers sound quite threatening, as we saw in Age of Ultron when she used the heroes’ fears against them. With Scarlet Witch set to appear in Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness, as well as the reality-twisting WandaVision, it’s possible we could be seeing a more dangerous version of her than we have till now.
While you wait for WandaVision to hit Disney Plus, check out everything we know about Marvel Phase 4 so far.
I'm a Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, 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.