As the MCU prepares to introduce mutants to the Marvel timeline, legendary actor Sir Ian McKellen has teased fans with talk of the links between his X-Men character Magneto, and Elizabeth Olsen’s Wanda Maximoff. In a recent Facebook post, McKellen claimed he would love to have a daughter like Elizabeth, hinting at the fact that in the lore of Marvel Comics, Magneto is Maximoff’s father.
Olsen most recently appeared as Wanda Maximoff, or more appropriately, the Scarlet Witch, in Doctor Strange 2. Judging by the darker character arc she is given in the new MCU movie, Maximoff is far more closely aligned to her narrative in the House of M comic book run. That particular story sees Wanda wipe out various Avengers and utter the famous phrase “No more mutants.”
At the heart of the House of M storyline, is the relationship between Wanda Maximoff and Magneto, with her father proving to be a catalyst to her fractured mental state. Will we ever see Sir Ian McKellen return as Magneto, to bring this family dynamic to life in MCU Phase 4 and beyond?
Well, by the sounds of McKellen’s Facebook post, he seems keen on the idea of linking up with Elizabeth Olsen. The veteran actor shared a link to an interview where Olsen is asked which version of Magneto she would want as her father, Sir Ian, or Michael Fassbender.
“If I had a daughter, I’d hope she’d be like Elizabeth. A treat to be her Daddy,” McKellen posted. Now, this could of course just be a couple of actors being nice to each other, but naturally, we are all reading more into this.
After the various Doctor Strange 2 cameos, it’s clear that mutants, or at least Professor Charles Xavier, now exist in the MCU. And, after Disney’s acquisition of Fox, Marvel has free reign to bring the X-Men to the MCU in a big way.
There is, of course, the issue of Wanda Maximoff’s lineage, which has seemingly already been established in the MCU without Magneto. But, as with comic books, the possibilities are endless in the realm of comic book movies, especially now that multiverses are a thing.