Did ‘WandaVision’ Really Just Introduce Evan Peters as Pietro?

**BIG SPOILERS FOR WANDAVISION EPISODE 5 AHEAD**

You didn’t see that coming? Cringe-worthy jokes aside, WandaVision Episode 5 “On a Very Special Episode…” finally confirmed the rumors that X-Men: Days of Future Past star Evan Peters would indeed be making an appearance on the Disney+ show. Not only that but Evan Peters seems to be playing the “recast” Pietro, meaning he’s bringing his version of Quicksilver into the MCU. The reveal could have colossal implications for the future of the MCU — and the X-Men appearing in the MCU — but it could also be a red herring. So what is going on with Evan Peters in WandaVision??

After an episode full of troubling revelations and enticing Easter eggs, WandaVision seemingly saved the best for last this week. Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) opens her front door to find her “long-lost brother” Pietro standing on her doorstep. Only it isn’t the deceased Aaron Taylor-Johnson version of Pietro from Avengers: Age of Ultron…but Evan Peters, aka Fox’s X-Men universe’s Quicksilver.

Since last week’s episode of WandaVision, we’ve been operating under the assumption that the “Hex,” as Darcy Lewis (Kat Dennings) calls “Sitcom Westview”, is all Wanda’s doing. However she insists to Vision (Paul Bettany) that it’s not all her. Case in point: she didn’t control the doorbell ringing or the arrival of this new Pietro. (She honestly seems confused by the recasting to boot!)

So what’s going on with Evan Peters on WandaVision? Could it be the start of the MCU’s “Mulitverse of Madness” storyline? And is Evan Peters really Quicksilver in WandaVision, or is something more sinister at play?

IS EVAN PETERS’S QUICKSILVER THE NEW PIETRO ON WANDAVISION?

Uh…that’s certainly what WandaVision wants us to believe? Ever since WandaVision Episode 3 gave us a poignant moment where Wanda remembers her dearly departed twin, we’ve been expecting Pietro to return. After all, if Wanda can bring Vision back from the dead — ew, that really is his corpse, you guys! — then it stands to reason she can do the same with non-synthezoids. There’s even a moment where her own darn sons say she can bring the dead back!

So when “Pietro” shows up at Wanda and Vision’s house, we’re led to assume this is her brother. Except he’s not. As Darcy says herself, he’s a “re-cast.” Instead of bringing back the Aaron Taylor-Johnson version of Pietro, we have Evan Peters’ Quicksilver from Fox’s X-Men movies. Here, he’s answering to Pietro instead of Peter (and so far hasn’t mentioned being a mutant), but it looks like he’s playing the same guy!

But before we embrace this wacky ’80s sitcom guest star version of Quicksilver, we have some concerns…

DOES EVAN PETERS IN WANDAVISION SET UP DOCTOR STRANGE AND THE MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS?

Uh…possibly?!? Elizabeth Olsen is currently in London shooting Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness with co-star Benedict Cumberbatch. The obvious implication is that WandaVision not only leads into that MCU film, but opens up the possibility of the “multiverse.”

Since Evan Peters is seemingly playing the MCU version of his Fox X-Men character, there could be some multiverse shenanigans at play…

IF EVAN PETERS IS PIETRO IN THE MCU, DOES THAT MEAN THE X-MEN ARE COMING?

Another good question! The whole reason there were dueling Quicksilvers onscreen in the 2010s was because Fox used to own the rights to two of Marvel’s biggest franchises: the X-Men and Fantastic Four. Because Wanda and Pietro were both Avengers and X-Men characters, though, both Marvel and Fox technically had the rights to use them in films. Marvel could put them in the Avengers, but not call them mutants, while Fox could call them mutants, but not Avengers.

And so, Elizabeth Olsen and Aaron Taylor-Johnson became Sokovian twins Wanda and Pietro Maximoff. They were granted powers from the Mind Stone in Avengers: Age of Ultron. 

Evan Peters was introduced as “Peter,” aka Quicksilver, in X-Men: Days of Future Past. He was definitely a mutant and possibly the son of Michael Fassbender’s Magneto.

They were separate, but sort of the same, but it was okay because never the twain would meet.

However with the Disney/Fox merger a few years back, both the X-Men and Fantastic Four reverted back to Marvel Studios. That’s why it’s possible Evan Peters isn’t just a kooky re-cast; he might be the same Quicksilver he played in the X-Men films, just showing up in the MCU.

It’s also why you might want to keep an eye out for Fantastic Four Easter eggs! The fact that SWORD is struggling to find qualified space pilots, the color scheme of the uniforms, the space-ness of it all…it all feels like set up for the Fantastic Four! That aerospace engineer that Monica talks up in this episode? Could it be Reed Richards?!? (Okay, now we’re stretching.)

But seriously: If Evan Peters is supposed to be the same guy he was in the X-Men movies, then this is the biggest thing to happen to the MCU since Nick Fury told Tony Stark about something called the Avengers Initiative.

WHAT IF EVAN PETERS ISN’T REALLY QUICKSILVER ON WANDAVISION?

Okay, here’s where this twist gets more complicated, folks. So strap in!

If Wanda is correct and she has no idea how the Hex started or who is controlling everyone, that suggests that she is being manipulated by a darker force. This “Pietro” seems to be a guest foisted upon her by this puppetmaster, which means he’s either another victim, or a potential villain.

Sure Evan Peters is yukking it up as Wanda’s long-lost brother, but he could also have an ulterior motive. After all, this was the episode when Vision started to finally confront Wanda about their fake reality and Wanda went toe-to-toe with SWORD herself. Whoever lured Wanda into this dream world might have sent “Pietro” to quell her doubts.

So yeah, essentially we still have more questions about Evan Peters’s appearance on WandaVision than answers. The good news is we’re officially at the halfway point in Season 1 of WandaVision, so the answers should be coming soon…

Where to stream WandaVision