Debra Jo Rupp Thought She’d Finally Be a Witch in ‘Agatha All Along’

We don’t blame her! Debra Jo Rupp confessed during Agatha All Along's PaleyFest panel that when she got the call to reprise her role in WandaVision for the Kathryn Hahn-led spinoff, she thought she’d finally get the chance to wear a pointy hat and ride a broomstick. 

WandaVision picks up after the events of Avengers: Endgame, where Vision’s death leaves Wanda heartbroken. To cope with her grief, she alters her reality, creating a world where Vision is alive, and they live a suburban life in Westview, New Jersey, with their two sons. 

For those who haven’t seen WandaVision yet, Debra Jo Rupp played Sharon Davis, wife of Todd Davis (Fred Melamed), and a resident of Westview. She also portrayed “Mrs. Hart” in the fictional sitcom Wanda created. In the show, her husband, “Arthur Hart,” works as Vision’s boss. 

With the success of the series, the spinoff Agatha All Along focuses on the witch Agatha Harkness—who was revealed as a surprise villain in WandaVision. In the spinoff, Agatha (Hahn) recruits Mrs. Hart to join her coven as a stand-in for a necessary “green witch.” (Marvel executives are considering Agatha All Along for a second season) 

Debra Jo Rupp shared that when they pitched her Agatha All Along, they told her “You’re gonna be a witch!” Rupp was very excited. But when she arrived on the set, it was obvious it was a witchy dream gone wrong.

She said, “I get there, I think I'm gonna be a witch — Debra Jo is gonna play a witch — [but] I get there, and no one is really looking me in the eye. And it just went downhill from there,” referring to *spoiler alert*, her character’s death. 

In a 2024 interview with Entertainment Weekly, creator Jac Schaeffer revealed that they always intended to include someone without magic or powers in Agatha's coven during the Witches' Road, a pathway that promises to grant witches their deepest desires after they overcome a series of trials.  

Schaeffer said, “It was so important early on when we figured out, we're doing the Witches' Road, we're doing this coven, the hilarious idea that we would bring a normie along. Debra Joe Rupp is a comedy genius. She can't not be funny, but we do horror-comedy on the show. This show has teeth, and in the later episodes it goes to really dramatic places.” 

Fortunately, Rupp didn’t mind not getting to cast any spells, because technically, she did play a witch—albeit a fake one. She said, “It's high stakes. But I think the beauty of this is that you may think you know where it's going, but you don't really know because each episode is unique.” 

Wandavision and Agatha All Along are available to stream on Disney+.