It was only a matter of time once the character of Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) was introduced to the Marvel Cinematic Universe in 2016 with his Scott Derrickson-directed solo film that discovering the multiverse was the next major focus of the series. 2018’s “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,” which made general audiences familiar with the “rules” of this fabulously comic-booky notion, may have beaten Marvel to the punch by another superhero film in a totally unrelated property. The next year, “Avengers: Endgame” relied even more heavily on the multiverse, and the Disney+ series “Loki” from 2021 did the same, bringing key terminology like “variants” and the purported “holy chronology” into the mix.
The Sam Raimi-directed sequel will undoubtedly be building upon the groundwork established by earlier MCU entries, but it’s also clear that “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness”will still make perfect sense to those who haven’t necessarily been keeping up with shows like “Loki” or “WandaVision” (though that background knowledge would sure help). The presence of numerous enigmatic variations of Stephen Strange himself was evident throughout the latest “Doctor Strange” trailer, which was highly awaited by fans. We are now receiving a clearer and more thorough explanation of how those variations and a few other surprises interact with the sequel’s narrative thanks to the most recent issue of Empire Magazine.
‘There are some very unexpected conclusions’
It’s become somewhat of a guessing game in a surprising number of recent Marvel films and television episodes as to whether the persons we see are genuinely who they seem to be at first glance. After “Captain Marvel,” almost anybody could pass for a Skrull shapeshifter. Similar to this, the “Multiverse of Madness” footage we’ve seen raises the question of whether the characters we’re seeing—like Christine Palmer, played by Rachel McAdams, and Karl Mordo, played by Chiwetel Ejiofor—are the original versions we’ve seen before, or if there are actually multiple, er, variants, on display. Some of that is clarified in the May 2022 issue of Empire, which states that the title character “comes face to face with variations of Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen), his old friend-turned-foe Karl Mordo (Chiwetel Ejiofor), Wong (Benedict Wong), his old flame Christine Palmer (Rachel McAdams), and even himself.”
Therefore, the vengeance-driven Mordo we see in the teaser might not be the same one who teased an overtly malevolent ending to the 2016 “Doctor Strange” film. However, in another part of the magazine, we learn that the Christine we see getting married in the trailer is actually the original, which sets up an unsettling undercurrent in which Stephen broods over the ex whom he treated so viciously in the past.
Meanwhile, we’ve seen a few of the truly bizarre Stephen Strange variations before, including three that Empire describes as “a corrupted, corroded version called Sinister Strange; a seemingly heroic variant based on the character’s run in the comic-book supergroup, The Defenders; and a zombified Strange.” Fans should expect the Sorcerer Supreme to have his hands full dealing with the potential presence of the MCU’s Illuminati (which may or may not feature a familiar X-Men character), an increasingly hostile Wanda Maximoff, and possibly even Xochitl Gomez’s America Chavez. This is in addition to the still-unseen appearances of an additional one or two Doctor Strange variants.
On May 6, 2022, “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” will be released in theatres. On March 17, 2022, Empire Magazine’s May issue will be available for purchase.
