Multiverse Of Madness: Will Wanda Get Her Children Back?

A recent TV spot for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness dropped a big reveal, confirming the previously rumoured reappearance of Wanda Maximoff's twin sons, Tommy and Billy. It is implied that the boys' appearance in this particular teaser is a dream sequence, as it is followed by a Wanda, in her Scarlet Witch outfit, declaring that every morning she wakes to the same nightmare. Presumably, this nightmare refers to Vision and their children being gone.

The TV spot has left many fans with yet another new question: Will Wanda get her children back in Multiverse of Madness? Maybe a look through Marvel history could give us a few hints.

A Mother's Loss

In the comics, Wanda suffers one of the most horrible periods of her life during a stint with the West Coast Avengers. First, her Husband, Vision, is left as a pale, emotionless shell of his former self, and shortly after, the souls of the couple's children, Tommy and Billy, are absorbed by Master Pandemonium, acting as a conduit for the demon Mephisto. Wanda's mentor, Agatha Harkness, erases any memory of her children, claiming it will be kinder to spare her the pain of losing the twins.

The plan backfires years later, when Wanda's memory of her children returns, and she murders Agatha in revenge for forcing her to forget them. In her troubled state, Wanda comes to blame the Avengers for the loss of the twins, and develops an obsession with restoring Tommy and Billy to life.

Dreams come true?

Wanda apparently succeeds, at least temporarily, in the iconic 'House of M' storyline. Using her reality-warping powers, Wanda alters the entire world, giving everyone what she believes they want most. In the case of Wanda herself, she has restored her children, and led everyone to believe that she is just a regular human, in order to allay any suspicions falling on her. Unfortunately, the 'House of M' Tommy and Billy are simply constructs in Wanda's new reality, and are lost once more when Wanda is forced to restore the world to it's original state (at least almost) at the end of the story.

Wanda disappears, and the twins no longer exist.. or do they?

Reincarnation

Sometime after Wanda's disappearance, a strange phenomenon occurs. Billy Kaplan and Tommy Shepherd, two unrelated but strangely identical teenage boys, join the Young Avengers under the codenames Wiccan and Speed. Billy soon develops a theory that he and Tommy are soul-twins, and the reincarnations of the Scarlet Witch's lost sons. Some of the older heroes try to discourage this line of thinking, as after the events of 'House of M', they have come to believe that Wanda is dangerous, and fear the teens will get themselves into trouble if they go looking for her.

However, Billy's theory is confirmed in 'Young Avengers: The Children's Crusade'. This is also a redemption story for Wanda, as she teams up with Wiccan to reverse her mass-depowering of the Mutant population from the end of 'House of M'.

While Wanda excepts the reincarnated twins as her children, she harbours some guilt regarding their existence, because she fears they may have overwritten the souls of existing children to come into being. She is also confused over the exact role she has in their lives, as they were both born to and raised by other parents. Billy's biological parents, Jeff and Rebecca Kaplan, are seen to have been particularly loving and attentive. But, despite the complicated nature of their relationship, Wanda loves Tommy and Billy deeply, and will never hesitate to step in if either one needs her help.

Do Billy and Tommy have a future in the MCU?

In the MCU, Tommy and Billy are born, age up to ten years old, and develop powers during the events of WandaVision. However, similar to the 'House of M' twins, Tommy and Billy cannot survive outside of the false reality Wanda has created in Westview, and they, along with Vision, disappear when Wanda brings down the Hex. However, in the series post credits sequence, the Scarlet Witch hears the twins calling to her as she studies the Darkhold, hinting that there may be a way to bring them back.

Now, with Tommy and Billy's appearance in Multiverse of Madness confirmed, fans are wondering how big their role in the film's plot will be. Some fans believe recovering the twins will be Wanda's key goal for the entire film, while others think she will begin helping Doctor Strange, only to have her focus diverted by the chance to save her children. There's also the possibility of variant Scarlet Witches with differing agendas.

The MCU is clearly building towards a take on the Young Avengers with the debut of characters like Kate Bishop and Ms. Marvel, so it stands to reason that Tommy and Billy, important members of the team in their Speed and Wiccan identities, will reappear sometime soon, whether it be in Multiverse Of Madness or another MCU project. However, when the twins do return, we can probably expect a much less complicated explanation than the comics version, so as not to alienate more casual fans.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness hits theatres on May 6.