Agatha: Darkhold Diaries
Agatha: Darkhold Diaries is an upcoming American television miniseries created by Jac Schaeffer for the streaming service Disney+, based on the Marvel Comics character Agatha Harkness. It is intended to be part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) produced by Marvel Studios, sharing continuity with the films of the franchise, and is a spin-off from the series WandaVision (2021). Schaeffer serves as head writer and the series' lead director. The series is also produced by 20th Television. Kathryn Hahn reprises her role as Agatha Harkness from WandaVision, with Aubrey Plaza, Joe Locke, Patti LuPone, Sasheer Zamata, Ali Ahn, Debra Jo Rupp, and Miles Gutierrez-Riley also starring. Development of the series had begun by October 2021, with Schaeffer and Hahn attached, and it was formally announced the next month. Schaeffer, Gandja Monteiro, and Rachel Goldberg were set as directors in early 2023 ahead of filming. A number of additional actors from WandaVision reprise their roles in Darkhold Diaries, as do members of the production team, such as many of the writers and the music team. Filming took place from mid-January to late May 2023 at Trilith Studios in Atlanta, Georgia, with additional filming in Los Angeles. The series went through a number of subtitles, after first being announced as Agatha: House of Harkness, then changing to Coven of Chaos in July 2022, before becoming Darkhold Diaries in September 2023. Agatha: Darkhold Diaries is scheduled to premiere on Disney+ in late 2024, and will consist of nine episodes. It will be part of Phase Five of the MCU. Premise 
Agatha Harkness finds she is powerless after breaking out of her containment in Westview, New Jersey. She looks to some unlikely allies to join her on her quest to regain her former powers. Cast and characters 

 Kathryn Hahn as Agatha Harkness: A powerful witch who had masqueraded as "Agnes", Wanda Maximoff and Vision's "nosy neighbor" within the fictional WandaVision sitcom. Aubrey Plaza as Rio Vidal: A witch in Harkness and Calderu's coven. Joe Locke as Billy Kaplan: A familiar. Patti LuPone as Lilia Calderu: A 450-year-old Sicilian witch and a member of Harkness's coven, whose skill is in divination. Sasheer Zamata as Jennifer Kale: A sorceress. Before auditioning for the series, Zamata had a previous fascination with witches and witchcraft, writing material about the subject for her stand-up special The First Woman and being influenced by Kristen J. Sollee's book Witches, Sluts and Feminists: Conjuring the Sex Positive. Ali Ahn as Alice: A witch. Debra Jo Rupp as Sharon Davis: A Westview, New Jersey resident who played "Mrs. Hart" in the fictional WandaVision sitcom. Miles Gutierrez-Riley as Hulkling: Billy's boyfriend. Reprising their roles from WandaVision (2021) as Westview residents are Emma Caulfield Ford as Sarah Proctor, who played "Dottie Jones" in the WandaVision sitcom, David Payton as John Collins / "Herb", David Lengel as Sarah's husband Harold Proctor / "Phil Jones", Asif Ali as Abilash Tandon / "Norm", and Amos Glick as a pizza delivery man cast as "Dennis". Also reprising their WandaVision roles are Kate Forbes as Agatha's mother, Evanora Harkness, and Brian Brightman as the Eastview, New Jersey sheriff. Additionally, Maria Dizzia and Okwui Okpokwasili have been cast in undisclosed roles. Episodes 

The series will consist of nine episodes. Schaeffer directed multiple episodes of series, as did Gandja Monteiro who directed the finale. and Rachel Goldberg also directing episodes. Production

Development 
In August 2019, at Disney's biennial convention D23, Kathryn Hahn was announced as cast in the role of Agnes, Wanda Maximoff and Vision's neighbor in the Marvel Studios Disney+ series WandaVision (2021). That series' seventh episode revealed that "Agnes" was actually Agatha Harkness, a character from the Marvel Comics. In May, WandaVision head writer Jac Schaeffer signed a three-year overall television deal with Marvel Studios and 20th Television to develop additional projects for the studios' Disney+ content. By October 2021, a "dark comedy" spin-off from WandaVision centered on Hahn's Harkness was in early development for that service from Marvel Studios, with Schaeffer returning from WandaVision as writer and executive producer. Hahn's involvement was part of a larger deal she signed with Marvel Studios to reprise the role in additional series and films. During the Disney+ Day event the following month, the series was officially announced as Agatha: House of Harkness. It was renamed to Agatha: Coven of Chaos by July 2022. Schaeffer was revealed to also be serving as a director of the series by that November, and Gandja Monteiro was revealed to also be directing the following month. They were both confirmed in January 2023 along with Rachel Goldberg as another director, with Schaeffer and Monteiro directing multiple episodes, including the first episode and the finale, respectively. The series was revealed to have been retitled once again to Agatha: Darkhold Diaries in September 2023. Series actress Aubrey Plaza had previously posted a photo in May 2023 during filming of a director's chair with that title, in a font based on the one used for the Disney film The Princess Diaries (2001). The multiple title changes were reported to not be caused by any indecision from Marvel Studios but were rather indicating, according to Adam B. Vary at Variety, that the title character was "up to her old skulduggery". A filing for the first episode with the United States Copyright Office indicated the series' title to simply be Agatha. Series actress Debra Jo Rupp described the series as the second season of WandaVision, comparing it to American Horror Story with how each season is a "whole new kind of a thing". Marvel Studios' Kevin Feige, Louis D'Esposito, Victoria Alonso, and Brad Winderbaum also serve as executive producers. 20th Television also produces the series. Writing 
Peter Cameron, Cameron Squires, Laura Donney, and Megan McDonnell are working on the series, all returning from WandaVision, alongside Laura Monti, Giovanna Sarquis, and Jason Rostovsky. Casting 
Hahn was expected to reprise her role in the series with the reveal of its development in October 2021, which was confirmed with the series' official announcement a month later. Emma Caulfield Ford revealed in October 2022 that she would reprise her role as Sarah Proctor / "Dottie Jones" from WandaVision. In November, Joe Locke, Aubrey Plaza, Ali Ahn, Maria Dizzia, and Sasheer Zamata joined the cast. Locke plays Billy Kaplan, the male lead of the series, which Deadline Hollywood described as a "gay teen with a dark sense of humor", while Plaza plays Rio Vidal, a newly created character for the series and a villain role. Ahn plays the witch Alice, with Dizzia also reported to be portraying a witch, and Zamata set for the recurring role of the sorceress Jennifer Kale. The following month, Patti LuPone joined the cast, as the witch Lilia Calderu. In January 2023, Debra Jo Rupp, David Payton, David Lengel, Asif Ali, Amos Glick, Brian Brightman, and Kate Forbes were revealed to be appearing in the series, reprising their respective roles from WandaVision as Sharon Davis / "Mrs. Hart", John Collins / "Herb", Harold Proctor / "Phil Jones", Abilash Tandon / "Norm", a pizza delivery man cast as "Dennis", the Eastview, New Jersey sheriff, and Agatha's mother Evanora Harkness. Miles Gutierrez-Riley was cast as Hulkling, with Okwui Okpokwasili also cast in the series. Design 
Daniel Selon serves as the costume designer, after previously working on WandaVision (2021), Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022), and Thor: Love and Thunder (2022) as an assistant costume designer, while John Collins serves as the production designer. Filming 
Principal photography began on January 17, 2023, at Trilith Studios in Atlanta, Georgia, with Schaeffer, Monteiro, and Goldberg directing episodes of the series. Caleb Heymann and Jon Chema served as cinematographers. The series was filmed under the working title My Pretty. Filming with Rupp also occurred in Los Angeles by February 2023, before moving to Atlanta for two months. The start of the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike in May 2023 was not expected to impact production of Darkhold Diaries, with Marvel Studios reportedly planning to shoot what they could during principal photography and make any necessary writing adjustments during the series' already scheduled reshoots. Filming wrapped by May 28. Music 
In January 2023, Hahn hinted at the inclusion of songs in the series, much like the original songs featured in WandaVision such as "Agatha All Along". In March, Christophe Beck revealed he would be composing the score for the series, after previously doing so for WandaVision and other MCU media. The following month, Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez were revealed to have written the songs for the series, returning from WandaVision. Hahn serves as the lead singer for some songs, with the other witch actors such as LuPone acting as background singers. Release 
Agatha: Darkhold Diaries is scheduled to premiere on Disney+ in late 2024 as a lead-up to Halloween, and will consist of nine episodes. A filing for the first episode with the United States Copyright Office indicates an approximate release on September 19, 2024. It was previously expected to debut as early as late 2023, however, by February 2023, amid Disney and Marvel Studios re-evaluating their content output, Secret Invasion and the second season of Loki were believed to be the only "sure bets" to debut in 2023; it was confirmed to be releasing in late 2024 in September 2023. It will be part of Phase Five of the MCU. Notes

References

External links 
  at Marvel.com
 

2020s American television miniseries
2020s American black comedy television series
2020s American superhero comedy television series

American television spin-offs
Disney+ original programming
English-language television shows
Marvel Cinematic Universe: Phase Five television series
Television series about witchcraft
Television series by 20th Century Fox Television
Television series by Marvel Studios
Television shows based on works by Jack Kirby
Television shows based on works by Stan Lee
Television shows filmed at Trilith Studios
Television shows filmed in Atlanta
Television shows filmed in Georgia (U.S. state)
Television shows filmed in Los Angeles
Upcoming television series
WandaVision
Works by Jac Schaeffer