Elizabeth Olsen: Why Did the ‘WandaVision’ Star Shut Down Her Instagram

Although WandaVision rules the streaming world right now, star Elizabeth Olsen is not on social media to share the joy with fans. Olsen deleted her Instagram account back in August of 2020. According to a report by We Got This Covered, the original reason Olsen stepped back from social media was because she received intense backlash for not posting a tribute to Chadwick Boseman.

Boseman passed away unexpectedly in August, leaving fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe devastated. Most of the franchise’s stars who are on social media posted tributes to Boseman, including Chris Evans, Robert Downey Jr. and Brie Larson. Olsen did not comment publicly on the tragedy that weekend, however, and it drew a surprising storm of angry comments down on her. Before long, the harassment became so overwhelming that Olsen needed to leave Instagram.

Olsen and Boseman both appeared in Avengers: Endgame, though their characters rarely interacted — if at all. In addition, Olsen was not a prolific social media user even when she was active. Fans did not expect up-to-the-minute commentary from her on each day’s topic, so it is perplexing that she took so much flak for failing to comment on this tragedy quickly enough.

Eventually, Olsen joined her co-stars on the ABC special Chadwick Boseman: A Tribute For A King, where she tearfully said: “It’s only fit to be mourning him like a king.” Olsen never directly stated that she left Instagram because of this controversy, but most fans speculate that that was the reason.

Today, MCU fans may be paying the price for chasing Olsen off of social media. If she were still present on Instagram, she might be actively engaging with fans each week as new episodes of WandaVision premiere on Disney+. The series centers around her character’s relationship with Vision (Paul Bettany), and brings a surreal new flavor to the franchise that fans can’t get enough of.

WandaVision is now six episodes into its first season, with three more on the way. The season will continue until March 5, when the season finale will air. After that, Marvel fans are looking forward to The Falcon and the Winter Soldier — another streaming-exclusive miniseries about Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) and Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan).

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier will be a more straightforward action-adventure story from the looks of it, with some buddy comedy sprinkled in for good measure. The show premieres on Friday, March 19 on Disney+.