Paul Bettany Reveals How Wandavision Made Him Fall In Love With Comedy Again
When "WandaVision" premiered on Disney+ in January 2021, it completely took the world by storm. The limited series earned 4.8 billion minutes-watched over its eight-week run (via Observer). Aside from its massive popularity with viewers, "WandaVision" drew rave reviews from critics. The show earned an impressive 23 Emmy nominations, including Outstanding Limited Series and Outstanding Lead Actor and Actress for Paul Bettany and Elizabeth Olsen (via Marvel).
Reflecting on his nomination, Bettany told ET, "It came as a huge surprise and a very welcome one. I was pretending not to care about it, but it turns out I did. Marvel is the job that just keeps on giving. It's been such a great ride. It's been so lovely to actually have something really substantial for both Lizzie and I to do, and it was such a lovely explosion of creativity from everybody involved." The Marvel veteran also spoke with the publication about how the show's unique style reignited an old passion.
Paul Bettany returned to his roots in WandaVision
In an interview with ET, "WandaVision" star Paul Bettany explained how he reimagined his character Vision to fit into the unique style of the series. The 50-year-old had to portray legendary sitcom icons such as Dick Van Dyke from "The Dick Van Dyke Show," Michael Gross from "Family Ties," and Bryan Cranston from "Malcolm in the Middle."
"I had not done comedy in years, since the days of 'Wimbledon,'" he explained. "I made 'Wimbledon' and a film called 'A Knight's Tale,' and I realized how much I loved [comedy]. And I haven't done it for a long time, and then to do it in front of a live studio audience," he explained, referring to "WandaVision"'s premiere episode, which paid homage to sitcoms of the 1950s. "It was a real challenge for me. I think it made me feel bolder."
Bettany also revealed that his favorite comedic moment in the series was in Episode 2 when Vision swallows a wad of gum that causes him to glitch. "I really loved the drunk magic scene, which was, as you can probably imagine, terrifying," he said. "And so [I was] really letting go and trying to shake off the calcification of 20 years acting in this business, or however long it's been, and just going for it." While the A-lister was nervous about his return to the comedy genre, his stellar performance proves he's still got his comedic chops.