Benedict Cumberbatch could by now play the role of Doctor Strange in his sleep, and that is probably just as well with at least four iterations of the character coming to screens in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. When it comes to the plot of the movie, it seems that, like many Marvel Studios projects, there was much of the final product constantly in flux right up to the point of filming, thanks in large to the ever-expanding interconnected nature of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Now, as we find ourselves heading into the last week before the release of Marvel’s next big hit, Cumberbatch spoke with JOE.ie about his role, the movie and how the story of Doctor Strange’s experiences in the multiverse has been evolving while the film was being made. While this would seem to be the reason for the numerous reshoots that occurred earlier this year, it also means that the movie will be one wild ride when it hits cinemas next week. Cumberbatch explained:
"There's a lot to examine, explain, and kind of absorb, but there is a sort of propulsion by the end, which is kind of great, like the last third, which was very much up in the air when we started shooting in typical Marvel fashion. It really comes together spectacularly. It's an awful lot in one film, and I think it has to have that pace from the beginning. What little I've seen of it, I worry when there's stuff that we're sitting down and talking about because I think we should be doing stuff now. But, then I'm in the film and I know it backwards. So, I'm just the worst judge of it. So, I think there are definitely moments where you as an audience can catch your breath and you need to."
Doctor Strange 2 Could Surpass Spider-Man: No Way Home in Blowing Away Expectations
There was a time when box office predictions were set in stone, and once estimated opening weekend figures were published, it was very rare for a movie to land too far from the ballpark range. Following the Covid pandemic, opening box office numbers are there to be defied, whether by a movie flopping compared to expectation or massively surpassing it. Spider-Man: No Way Home hit cinemas in December and completely smashed both its opening weekend and worldwide total box office predictions considering many countries were still amid Covid restrictions. Now Doctor Strange could do that all over again.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is currently expected to open on around $150 million, but with numerous TV spots and trailers continuing to show the extent of what awaits fans when the multiverse is truly broken open, and the movie already boasts over $40 million in advanced ticket sales, then Marvel Studios will likely be looking at another massive over-performing addition to the MCU when the movie drops next week.