Filmed Before a Live Studio Audience

Filmed Before a Live Studio Audience
Season	1
Writer	Jac Schaeffer
Director	Matt Shakman
First Aired	January 15, 2021
Marvel Cinematic Universe
Next →	Don't Touch That Dial

"We are an unusual couple, you know."
"Oh, I don't think that was ever in question."

―Wanda Maximoff and Vision

Filmed Before a Live Studio Audience is the first episode of the first season of WandaVision.

Synopsis

Wanda and Vision struggle to conceal with their powers during dinner with Vision's boss and his wife.

Plot

Maximoff and Vision drive through Westview

In a 1950s setting, the seemingly newlywed couple of Wanda Maximoff and Vision arrive in the suburban town of Westview. Both try to live as normal a life as possible, with Vision hiding his robotic appearance under a human disguise while Maximoff limits her powers.

One day, the two puzzle over the significance of a mysterious heart on their kitchen calendar. Neither of them can remember the occasion, so they decide they are celebrating something special together. As Vision leaves the house for work, Maximoff points out he has forgotten to transform himself into his human appearance, which he does before heading out. Not long after, Maximoff meets next-door neighbor "Agnes" and gets caught off guard when she cannot answer how long she and Vision have been together or where their wedding rings are. She then proclaims she and Vision are celebrating their anniversary, to which Agnes promptly offers to help plan the special night.

At Computational Services Inc. Headquarters, Vision's coworker Norm marvels at how fast he works and jokes that he is like a walking computer, which Vision denies. His inability to understand the significance of what today is resolved when he remembers that he is hosting his boss, Mr. Hart, and his wife, Mrs. Hart for dinner. Mr. Hart, who is looking forward to the evening, explains the importance of the dinner, pointing to former employee Phil Jones, who is leaving because the dinner he hosted was not to Mr. Hart's liking. Vision then calls Maximoff, and the two talk about their plans for the night without ever specifying the occasion they think they are celebrating.

Later that night, Maximoff sneaks up behind Mr. Hart, mistaking him for Vision, and gives him the old “guess who.” Vision scrambles to explain that Maximoff is from Sokovia and lies that this is the customary Sokovia way of greeting guests. The Harts without much hassle accept the explanation.

Eventually, Vision and Maximoff retreat to the kitchen where Vision explains that the heart on the calendar represents his boss’ visit. Wanda snaps herself into a new dress and begins going to work on cooking a home-cooked meal.

Vision singing “Yakety Yak” for Mrs. Hart and Arthur Hart

Vision speaks with his boss about work and again tries to get more information about what his company actually does. Agnes arrives in the kitchen using the house's back door to help Maximoff prepare dinner but she drops a pot in the process. The crash in the kitchen is loud enough that Mrs. Hart chooses to offer her help. But Vision is able to stop her. Inside the kitchen, Maximoff hurries Agnes out of their home and begins going to work using her powers but ends up causing another crash. As Mrs. Hart makes another attempt to help in the kitchen, Vision distracts her by singing “Yakety Yak”, catching everyone off guard.

Maximoff struggles to make dinner, burning the chicken to a crisp at first and then turning a chicken into a basket of eggs while Vision continues to distract the Harts with a sing-along. Unfortunately, as the night wears on, The Harts begin to grow impatient and just as Mr. Hart begins to scold Vision, Maximoff quickly lays out their dinner and they all sit down to eat some breakfast for dinner.

Mrs. Hart asks Maximoff about their story

Mrs. Hart asks Maximoff about their story, which neither she nor Vision can come up with. Mr. Hart begins to demand answers until he starts choking on his food. Maximoff looks panicked for a bit before finally telling Vision to save Mr. Hart. Vision removes the food from his boss’ airway and saves his life in the process, which prompts an end to their visit. Surprisingly, the Harts are pleased and Mr. Hart promises to talk with Vision about a promotion on Monday morning.

The fictional sitcom being watched by someone

After their guests leave, Maximoff points out that she and Vision have no anniversary, song, or wedding rings. Vision decides that today will be their anniversary, and their song will be "Yakety Yak," after which Maximoff conjures wedding rings for them both. As they share a kiss and the "episode" comes to an end, a mysterious figure observes the strange sitcom from an unknown location, writing down observations in a notebook bearing the S.W.O.R.D. insignia.

Cast

Main Cast:

• Elizabeth Olsen as Wanda Maximoff
• Paul Bettany as Vision
• Debra Jo Rupp as "Mrs. Hart"
• Fred Melamed as "Arthur Hart"
• Kathryn Hahn as "Agnes O'Connor"
• Kat Dennings as Darcy Lewis (uncredited)

Guest Stars:

• Asif Ali as "Norm Gentilucci"
• David Lengel as "Phil Jones"
• Ithamar Enriquez as Commercial Man
• Victoria Blade as Commercial Woman
• Amos Glick as "Dennis Webber"

Appearances

Locations

• Westview, New Jersey
  • Vision Residence
  • Computational Services Inc. Headquarters
  • S.W.O.R.D. Response Base
  • Agnes' House (mentioned)
• Sokovia (mentioned)

Events

• Westview Anomaly

Items

• Vibranium
• Infinity Stones
  • Mind Stone
• ToastMate 2000
• Maison du Mépris
• Agatha Harkness' Locket
• Coy Soap (picture)

Vehicles

• Buick LeSabre

Sentient Species

• Humans
• Synthezoids

Creatures

• Chickens
• Lobsters
• Yaks (mentioned)
• Turtles (mentioned)
• Pigs (mentioned)

Organizations

• Computational Services Inc.
• S.W.O.R.D.
• Westview Herald
• Glamorous
• Stark Industries (logo)
• Coy Soap (picture)

Mentioned

• Vision
• Ralph Bohner
• Dottie Jones
• Ralph Bohner's Mother
• Babs Digby
• Abe Brown
• Leonard Hooper
• Pamela Brewster
• Sammy Addison
• Miriam Norton
• Felix Rizzio
• Cathy Collings
• Delia Kane
• Old MacDonald
• Bolshevism

Trivia

• The episode was initially titled as "Episode 1" upon release.
• The episode title refers to a phrase that used to be said at the start of sitcoms, to inform the audience that the laughter was real. This phrase fell out of use as sitcoms started using canned laughter.
• This episode pays several homages to the "American Dream" style sitcoms of the 1950s, most notably The Dick Van Dyke Show.
• The fake closing credits seen on S.W.O.R.D.'s monitor lists Abe Brown as director. A character with the same name previously appeared in Spider-Man: Homecoming.

Behind the Scenes

• Filmed Before a Live Studio Audience was indeed filmed in front a selected live audience, similarly to a stage play. Teyonah Parris, who plays Monica Rambeau in subsequent episodes, was in the audience. Producer Jac Schaeffer expressed the desire to film all nine episodes of the series with live audience, but this was piped down very quickly.
• Additional shooting took place without the studio audience for moments when something goes wrong with Maximoff's illusion, such as in the episode's dinner scene. Shakman used lenses, lighting, and sound design to change the mood for these moments, inspired by The Twilight Zone, and felt the transition to these moments from the multi-camera sitcom scenes was "very dramatic".
  • In the dinner scene, Mrs. Hart repeatedly says "stop it", for which Shakman instructed Rupp to act as if she had one emotion on the inside and another on her face. Rupp said balancing the levity and horror of the scene was "one of the more interesting things" she was asked to do, and described these moments in the series as "genius".

Music

Song title	Artist	Location(s)
A Newlywed Couple	Kristen Anderson-Lopez, Sara Mann, Jessica Rotter, Cindy Bourquin, Elyse Willis, Laura Dickinson, Robert Lopez, Eric Bradley, Greg Whipple, Jasper Randall & Gerald White	Opening Credits.
Yakety Yak	The Coasters	Vision works at the Computational Services Inc. with "Norm".
If I Could Make You Mine	The Joel Evans Big Band & Willie Murillo	Playing in radio when "Norm" talking with Vision about him looking like a "walking computer" (instrumental).
Ella's Tune	Ivor Slaney	Mr. Hart and Mrs Hart come in through the door of Vision Residence.
Yakety Yak	Paul Bettany	Vision begins to sing as a way to distract "Arthur Hart" and "Mrs. Hart" from seeing Wanda Maximoff use her powers.
Old MacDonald Had a Farm	Paul Bettany & Debra Jo Rupp	Vision leads "Arthur Hart" and "Mrs. Hart" in a sing-a-long to "Old MacDonald Had a Farm" while he plays the ukulele in order to give Wanda Maximoff time to prepare dinner.

Videos

Calendar - Marvel Studios’ WandaVision - Disney+

ToastMate 2000 - Marvel Studios' WandaVision - Disney+

A Newlywed Couple (From "WandaVision- Episode 1"-Audio Only)

Wanda's Theme (End Credits from "WandaVision") (From "WandaVision- Episode 1"-Audio Only)

External Links

• Filmed Before a Live Studio Audience on Wikipedia
• Filmed Before a Live Studio Audience on IMDb
• Filmed Before a Live Studio Audience on Disney+
• Filmed Before a Live Studio Audience on Marvel Database