The Darkhold has appeared multiple times in theMCUand beyond and made a huge impact each time. The Darkhold is one of themost powerful artifacts in the MCU, containing mystical practices within its pages that significantly bolster thepowers of the MCU’s magic userswhile granting access to sinister new abilities. For instance, it was able to grant Agatha Harkness the power to resist Wanda’s Westview hex and put her through her paces in a one-on-one fight and afford Doctor Strange and Scarlet Witch the power to traverse the multiverse through dreamwalking.
The Darkhold was destroyed by Wanda Maximoff, who deployed her amplified powers to ensure its destruction across the multiverse. Nevertheless, this still hasn’t stopped the Darkhold from reappearing in the MCU, demonstrating the insidiousness of its power and influence. While its physical form has been ostensibly eviscerated, it seems clear that its story is not yet through - so here iseverything to know about the Darkhold’s historyas its legacy continues to pervade the Multiverse Saga.
The Darkhold First Appeared In WandaVision
The Darkhold Was First In Agatha Harkness' Possession Before Wanda Took It
WandaVisionfocused on a traumatized Wanda Maximoff and her desperate attempt to reacquire a life with Vision, using her reality-warping chaos magic to fabricate an idyllic suburban life with an unwitting cast of innocent township residents. The feat was a stark demonstration of Wanda’s power levels as she held multiple people under her thrall while creating a family from nothing but her force of will and magic. Nevertheless,Agatha Harkness could resist the hex thanks to her possession of the Darkhold.
Every MCU Character That Has Used The Darkhold, Ranked By Power
The plot of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness heavily revolves around the Darkhold, but who among its MCU users is the most powerful?
The Darkhold first appears in episode 7, “Breaking the Fourth Wall,” when Wanda discovers Agatha’s basement and the truth of her identity. Its reveal is brief and remains clandestine until episode 9, “The Series Finale,” where Agatha elaborates on its use for her nefarious deeds. It sits on a pedestal in its first appearance, wreathed in a mystical orange glow, where it remains until Agatha causes it to materialize in her showdown with Wanda in the streets of Westview.
Agatha opens the Darkhold to reveal that an entire chapter has been dedicated to the Scarlet Witch, detailing the unique nature of her powers as their use requires no coven or incantation. She also reveals that the Scarlet Witch’s powers exceed those of the Sorcerer Supreme. This would become abundantly clear in both the Darkhold and Wanda’s subsequent cinematic appearance, which was set up by apost-credits scene inWandaVisionwhich shows Wanda studying the Darkhold, setting her on a dark course.
Scarlet Witch Destroyed The Darkhold In Multiverse Of Madness
The Transcribed Copy Was Destroyed By Sarah Wolfe Before Wanda Destroyed Darkhold Castle
The Darkhold is the MacGuffin ofDoctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. After taking possession of the book inWandaVision, Wanda has studied its contents to learn about the multiverse and how to access it. She reveals to Strange that she intends to use the book to reunite with her children, Billy and Tommy, whom she has discovered exist outside of her Westview hex in other universes. It is also revealed that severalvariants of Doctor Strangehave also fallen foul of the Darkhold.
To reunite with her children.
Doctor Strange (Earth-616)
To defeat Wanda by Dreamwalking into the zombified corpse of Defender Strange.
To defeat Thanos with augmented powers.
Sinister Strange
To be with Christine Palmer and kill Strange variants who aren’t.
The Darkhold first appears as Doctor Strange visits Wanda to seek her aidin what initially appears to be a picturesque orchard. As Wanda lets slip that she is the one pursuing America Chavez, she drops the powerful illusion to reveal a desolate landscape where the orchard once stood, with the Darkhold floating nearby, opened to a page with sinister glowing runes. Strange immediately recognizes the artifact, noting that it corrupts everything and everyone it touches.
The physical Darkhold is destroyed by Sara Wolfe in Kamar-Taj before Wanda learns of the Darkhold Castle, which is where Cthon’s magic is etched into the walls.
The Darkhold continues to power Wanda’s villainy throughout the movie, as well as that of Sinister Strange, before Doctor Strange uses its power to aid in Wanda’s defeat. After encouraging America Chavez to fully harness her power, Wanda recognizes the need to destroy the item after her children in Earth-838 run in fear of her corrupted form. Wanda uses her power to destroy every variant of theDarkhold and collapse Mount Wundagore’s Darkhold Castlearound herself, ostensibly dying in the process.
The Darkhold Appeared In A Vision In Agatha All Along
This Appearance Of The Darkhold Confirms A Dark Facet Of Agatha’s Backstory
After wielding its power inWandaVision, Agatha spends the first two episodes of her spinoff solo series,Agatha All Along, learning of its fate. Cryptic clues litter the first episode as Agatha - the only Westview resident still under the effects of Wanda’s hex - investigates the circumstances surrounding what appears to be Wanda’s corpse, learning that every Darkhold was destroyed in the process. The physical copy of the Darkhold does not appear in this episode, though it manifests later nonetheless.
The moment seemingly confirms that Agatha made a fiendish deal to trade her son, Nicholas Scratch, for the Darkhold, though her grief suggests that the transaction was not enthusiastically struck.
The Darkhold makes another appearance inAgatha All Alongepisode 3. As the cobbled-together coven tackles their first trial and begins brewing the antidote for a poison they all consumed that sparked personalized visions of woe, Agatha begins experiencing hers. In it,the Darkhold manifests in a crib taking the place of a bawling baby as Agatha, who is visibly distressed, pulls its blanket aside. The moment seemingly confirms that Agatha made a fiendish deal to trade her son, Nicholas Scratch, for the Darkhold, though her grief suggests that the transaction was not enthusiastically struck.
The Darkhold’s Appearances In Non-MCU Marvel Projects
An Early Version Of The Darkhold Appeared In Agents Of SHIELD And Runaways
The Darkhold has also appeared twice outside ofthe main MCU timeline. This version of the Darkhold appears markedly different from the eldritch design of its MCU counterpart, with an ambigram that reads “Darkhold” in both directions on its cover instead of a stony facade that emanates a visible magic aura. This version of the Darkhold appeared several years before its MCU debut in 2021’sWandaVision, but has since been confirmed as non-canon.
The book played a central role in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s season 4 Ghost Rider arc, which concluded when Robbie Reyes took the Darkhold to Hell via a portal, removing it from the reach of easily influenced mortals.
The Darkhold first appeared inAgents of S.H.I.E.L.D.in season 4 episode 4, “Let Me Stand Next to Your Fire,” whenAgent Colson reveals an image of the Darkhold on a digital screen, asserting its grave importance. It is then revealed physically in the subsequent episode during a flashback sequence. The book played a central role inAgents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s season 4 Ghost Rider arc, which concluded when Robbie Reyes took the Darkhold to Hell via a portal, removing it from the reach of easily influenced mortals.
Despite being created by the elder god Cthon, the early version of the Darkhold is shown to have a connection to the Dark Dimension, the same dimension that Dormammu rules over.
The Darkhold reappeared, however, in Marvel’sRunaways. In season 3 episode 6, “Merry Meet Again.“The Book of the Damned is revealed to be in the possession of Morgan Le Fay, a powerful witch who has yet to make her MCU debut and intends to use the book to conquer Earth. It is used to initiate Nico Minoru into her coven, before Robert Minoru attempts to steal it only to meet his end at the hands of Le Fay.
Agents Of SHIELD Timeline & MCU Watch Order: How It Fits With The Movies
Agents of SHIELD was literally designed to tie in to the MCU - so here’s how to watch the show and fit it in with the mainstream MCU timeline.
The Darkhold would boast a more extensive legacy in the MCU if it was not confirmed that bothAgents of SHIELDandRunawaysare no longer canon to the main MCU timeline. This was established with the release and contents of Marvel’sThe Marvel Cinematic Universe: An Official Timeline, from which the events of each show were conspicuously omitted. Instead, Kevin Feige hinted that the events of these shows took place outside of theMCU’s Sacred Timeline - which would mean that this version of the Darkhold was also destroyed with Wanda’s final act in the Darkhold Castle.
Marvel Cinematic Universe
The Marvel Cinematic Universe is a multimedia superhero franchise that began in 2008 with Paramount’s Iron Man starring Robert Downey Jr. The franchise quickly grew in popularity, with Disney eventually buying out Marvel Entertainment in 2009. The MCU consists of dozens of movies and TV shows, most notably Avengers: Endgame, WandaVision, and Loki.
