LOS ANGELES, Sept 17 (Reuters) - Actor Kathryn Hahn met
with a person she describes as a real-life witch every week to
help her further embrace her role as the witch Agatha Harkness
in the show "Agatha All Along."
"Her mission was to try to de-trope what we see as witches
and really add the aspect of community and nature," Hahn said.
The Marvel miniseries created by director Jac Schaeffer
serves as a spin-off of the Emmy-winning Disney Plus
series "WandaVision," also created by Schaeffer.
Hahn reprises her role as Harkness from "WandaVision" and is
joined by Debra Jo Rupp, who reprises her role as Mrs. Hart;
Aubrey Plaza; Joe Locke; Patti LuPone; Sasheer Zamata and Ali
Ahn.
The first two of the nine episodes of "Agatha All Along"
arrive on Disney Plus on Wednesday.
The show picks up after the events of "WandaVision," as
Harkness finds herself still trapped in the town of Westview,
New Jersey, under a trance.
However, she is able to escape from the town with the help
of a goth teenage witch who encourages her to regain her powers
by facing the trials of the legendary "Witches' Road."
Together, Harkness and the goth youth, who is called "Teen"
since his name is not immediately revealed, recruit other
witches to join their new coven and embark on a journey for
magical powers.
For Schaeffer, it was important to tell a story about women
in power and assemble a team of writers that could explore the
different supernatural gifts that witches across mythology and
popular culture possess.
"I tasked the writers with really in-depth research," she
said.
"They all had sort of different areas of interest. You know,
one writer was really into tarot. One writer was very into
herbology and trees, and then others were big fans of certain
kinds of witchy content," she added.
Another aspect of women in power that struck the cast and
creatives was that the coven of women witches was created by
real-life women.
"I mean directed by women, written by a woman, acted by
women, and Joe (Joe Locke)," Rupp said, highlighting the
majority work from women on the series.
For Ahn, the miniseries also shows the range of what it
means to be a powerful woman by introducing complex and flawed
characters.
"There's not just one way that you can embody power," Ahn
said. "You know, there's all the witches, all the characters are
so different. I think that's pretty remarkable. It's like, the
diversity of the way in which these women will show up, you
know, literal and emotional."
The coven also expressed themselves through music, including
a special witches' song called "The Ballad of the Witches' Road"
that they sing together.
For three-time Tony-winning Broadway performer Patti LuPone,
playing the witch named Lilia Calderu felt like it was meant to
be.
"You know, it becomes fated or destiny when you start to
recognize, 'OK, I played a witch in 'Penny Dreadful' and now I'm
playing another witch," LuPone said.
"I've done tarot in 'American Horror Story,' and now, it's
this," she added.