2013 indie darling Brief Time period 12 managed to gather quite a few notable skills earlier than their careers reached one other degree, and Agatha All Alongside govt producer Mary Livanos occurs to have her personal Marvel-related connection to all of it.
In addition to names like Rami Malek, LaKeith Stanfield and Kaitlyn Dever, Brief Time period 12 marked the start of filmmaker Destin Daniel Cretton’s four-time collaboration with Brie Larson, which incorporates her cameo as Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel within the former’s MCU debut, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. Nicely, it seems that Livanos was a PA on Cretton’s Los Angeles-based Brief Time period 12 set in 2012, and he or she would finally climb the ranks to change into Larson’s EP on The Marvels (2023).
Previous to The Marvels, Livanos made a reputation for herself as co-executive producer on Marvel Studios’ most profitable streaming collection, WandaVision. And along with creator Jac Schaeffer, the duo had been tasked with spinning off their Emmy-nominated collection into an Agatha Harkness-led present starring Kathryn Hahn.
In November 2021, the collection was introduced with the title Agatha: Home of Harkness, however this designation ended up being the primary of many alternative title adjustments, culminating in Might 2024’s reveal that it was all an elaborate gag, because the title was all the time Agatha All Alongside.
“Hats off to Jac Shaeffer on that one, and our unbelievable writers’ room, with the perfect day of brainstorming I feel we’ve ever had, determining all these titles,” Livanos tells The Hollywood Reporter. “It was an actual blast to launch crazier and crazier ones because the manufacturing went on, and our forged was so recreation, too. The character of the stunt felt very Agatha.”
Beneath, throughout a current dialog with THR, Livanos additionally explains how Agatha All Alongside’s unique music, “The Ballad of the Witches’ Street,” serves a really totally different goal than the chart-topping “Agatha All Alongside” from WandaVision.
The fan theories surrounding WandaVision had been fairly overwhelming, and whilst you need that type of engagement, a few of your collaborators have admitted that they fearful about disappointing folks. Agatha All Alongside nonetheless has loads of materials for folks to chew on in that means, however did the staff take any steps to stop followers from turning an unnamed “aerospace engineer” into Reed Richards once more?
(Laughs.) I’d say we simply introduced the identical pleasure and enthusiasm to the writing and the creation of [Agatha All Along], similar to we did WandaVision. It’s pleasant that followers take pleasure in theorizing a lot, and as a Marvel fan myself, I can completely relate. However what’s nice about this present is that it has tons of reveals, and so I feel followers will actually benefit from the journey in the event that they like theorizing, as properly.
Kathryn Hahn as Agatha Harkness in Jac Schaeffer’s Agatha All Alongside
Courtesy of Marvel Tv.
You and your staff pulled off this elaborate and ingenious gag involving the ever-changing title of the collection. Whose brainchild was it?
Hats off to Jac Shaeffer on that one, and our unbelievable writers’ room, with the perfect day of brainstorming I feel we’ve ever had, determining all these titles. It was an actual blast to launch crazier and crazier ones because the manufacturing went on, and our forged was so recreation, too. The character of the stunt felt very Agatha, very liar. So it felt very on theme, and it was enjoyable to do.
“Agatha All Alongside” can be the title of the chart-topping single from WandaVision, and also you seemingly knew from the beginning that you just’d need to by some means try to match it. After all, the Lopezes can write hit songs of their sleep, however was it nonetheless a frightening process because the final music set the best bar doable?
Nicely, after “Agatha All Alongside” beat Justin Bieber on the music charts, we knew that we needed to discover a strategy to work with the Lopezes once more, particularly as a result of they’re so beautiful to work with. Their songwriting simply enhanced the feel of WandaVision a lot, and we had been actually seeking to discover a means to do this once more, so we strived to take action. However the position that “The Ballad of the Witches’ Street” narratively takes over the course of the present simply grows and grows, and I’m very excited for followers to uncover precisely the way it compounds.
Because the trailers have proven, Agatha examines a lifeless physique, and Wanda’s title then seems on a library card subsequent to it. Will this collection positively reply the query surrounding Wanda’s destiny?
Nicely, I can inform you that Agatha has been trapped in Wanda’s distorted spell, and naturally, after the occasions of Physician Unusual within the Multiverse of Insanity, Wanda was taken off the desk. So I feel followers must tune in to search out out extra. That’s all I can say.
Agatha Harkness (Kathryn Hahn) in Jac Schaeffer’s Agatha All Alongside
Chuck Zlotnick/MARVEL
Have been you in a position to shoot exteriors at Warner Ranch earlier than it was torn down?
We had been! We liked capturing on Blondie Avenue on the unbelievable and historic Warner Bros. Ranch. Agatha’s home is the home that was featured in Bewitched. So we had been very, very fortunate to shoot there, and we’ll miss it.
Lastly, I seen you had a PA job on Brief Time period 12. Did you deliver this as much as Brie Larson at a sure level on Captain Marvel or The Marvels?
(Laughs.) It has come up, however we didn’t cross paths on Brief Time period 12. I truly was in a position to have that chance whereas I used to be interning with Marvel. I set to work San Diego Comedian-Con and I met a producer there who introduced me on to that movie. However I did the PA factor. I took out the rubbish and did lockups and manned a walkie-talkie. So life is serendipitous, and the world is small.
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Agatha All Alongside premieres Sept. 18 on Disney+.
