Marvel films don’t often go hand in hand with low-key actresses. Big Hollywood blockbusters tend to act as magnets for showy, big-time names and the kind of stars who like to eat out at flashy restaurants amid wails of dwindling privacy. Elizabeth Olsen is an anomaly to the formula.
For the past three years, the LA-based actress has played Scarlet Witch in the Avengers franchise, a superhero who can alter both probability and reality. Next week sees the culmination of the Marvel film series – the release of Avengers: Infinity War, which brings the giant superhero ensemble together. The cast is huge and the hype is massive, and yet Elizabeth Olsen would rather be at home with her friends putting her newfound bread-making skills to the test.
“If I could do whatever I wanted for the day, I’d start with going to the gym or doing some sort of workout, then I’d go to the grocery store because my favourite thing to do is grocery shop,” she says. “The night before I would have prepped bread, like dough, then the next day I’d bake bread and create a delicious meal, sit outside in the sun, eat delicious food all day with people I love.”