Elizabeth Olsen Says She Was A Lazy Actor
Elizabeth Olsen says she used to take any role she thought would get her a Hollywood "pass."
This article is more than 2 years old
While MCU fans certainly know of the hard work that actress Elizabeth Olsen does in helping depict Wanda Maximoff onscreen, what many might not know is that Olsen admits she used to be somewhat lazy. In an interview with Variety, the actress revealed it took her a long time to take chances as a performer. Olsen said that after her work on Martha Marcy May Marlene, she decided to do what she thought would “get her a pass” in Hollywood.
“if I was available and there was a job offer, and the character seemed like something I hadn’t done yet, I would say yes — that’s all it took.” She says she was “lazy”: “I was doing what I knew would get me a pass, but I wasn’t trying to go beyond that.”
Elizabeth Olsen came into the movie world with her work in the 2011 Sundance film Martha Marcy May Marlene. The Sean Durkin-directed project focused on a young woman dealing with paranoia after returning to her family from an abusive cult. The film won Durkin the Best Director award at Sundance and became a critical darling.
After her performance in the film, Elizabeth Olsen eventually went on to star as Wanda Maximoff in Marvel’s Avengers: Age of Ultron. It was the MCU debut of the Scarlet Witch, whom many comic book fans were excited to see after her devastating story arc in the comics. Following her debut in Age of Ultron, Olsen continued playing the character in several MCU projects.
The workload and commitment Elizabeth Olsen carries are remarkable, considering the actress had only debuted in the MCU a few short years ago and is not considered one of the OG Avengers. Much of Olsen’s popularity as Wanda Maximoff became poignant after her performance in the Disney+ series WandaVision, in which Olsen played homage to several decades of sitcom and television tropes alongside actor Paul Bettany. WandaVision became the most watched show on Disney+ after its premiere, even ahead of Lucasfilm’s The Mandalorian, which was also a favorite amongst fans.
Following her performance in WandaVision, speculation arose about Elizabeth Olsen’s Wanda Maximoff possibly receiving her own theatrical movie. Scarlet Witch played a massive role in director Sam Rami’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness this past Spring. While the character appeared to have suffered her demise at the end of the film, many MCU fans expect her to return soon.
But while her increasing popularity may look like a positive to some, Elizabeth Olsen herself felt “frustrated” over the amount of time she spent in the MCU. During an interview with The New York Times, Olsen admitted she sometimes felt heartbroken over the length of her MCU contract. While she was happy with the job security that came with being part of such a massive franchise, losing out on potentially award-winning, challenging roles eventually became devastating.
Ironically, Elizabeth Olsen decided to take on the role of Wanda Maximoff to prevent being a typecast as an indie darling. However, the actress has since changed her tune, saying now that the decision to be part of the MCU has led to her being typecast as an action star. Now it seems as if the actress is always working on something massive.
We’ll have to wait and see what direction Elizabeth Olsen’s career takes next. The actress recently revealed why she departed from Instagram, saying she didn’t like what did to her mindset. With the actress’ popularity growing with each MCU entry she’s in, maybe she’s ready to take a bit of a break.
