One thing about creating a multiverse is that it gives filmmakers a way of doing extreme things in an alternative reality without necessarily having to deal with the consequences later on down the line. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness could well use this plot device to devastating effect if a new rumor is to be believed that next Marvel movie is about to have “an impressive bodycount” and will also use its multiverse variants “to great effect.” With director Sam Raimi’s history in horror movies like The Evil Dead, the latest adventure of Doctor Strange could well prove to be one of the darkest in the MCU to date.
According to a new report by The Direct, industry insider KC Walsh claims to know someone who has been privy to an early screening of the upcoming Doctor Strange sequel well in advance of its May release. While they did not go into specific spoiler details, as you would expect for anyone who doesn’t want to see the wrath of Kevin Feige come down on them, the suggestion of chaos and dark times coming to the MCU does seem to fit with the run of the MCU’s narrative over the course of Phase 4 so far, with Spider-Man: No Way Home having brought tragedy to Peter Parker's world and seemingly set in motion the breaking of the Marvel timeline and the unleashing of the multiverse.
While the prospect of a multiverse has been mentioned previously in the MCU, it is only since the Loki TV series on Disney+ that we have learned more about exactly how alternative universes have been controlled in the Marvel world, and how every now and then variants from one timeline have managed to stray from one reality into another. One such variant revealed in that series was He Who Remains, a benevolent version of the upcoming major villain Kang the Conqueror, who will make his grand appearance in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania next year, and many other character variants have already been featured in the animated series, What If…?, which revealed the first on-screen appearance of an evil version of Doctor Strange called Strange Supreme.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness Will See the True Power of the Multiverse Unleashed
Since it was announced, there has been no secret made that Multiverse of Madness will be a horror story told within the MCU. With the trailer having introduced the presence of Strange Supreme – or another similar variant – the inclusion of a fully realized Scarlet Witch and the supervillain Gargantos, there is certainly a lot for Doctor Strange to contend with even before considering what other nightmares the multiverse holds behind a thin curtain of reality.
According to recent reports, the reshoots on the movie that came to an end last week included a number of additional character cameos and more introductions. That has led to a number of internet suggestions as to just who Marvel could be bringing back from past iterations of their characters. This has only been spurred on further thanks to the Sony universe crossovers seen in Spider-Man: No Way Home, which now seems to suggest that any actor who has played a Marvel role, from Fox’s X-Men movies to Netflix’s Marvel Television shows and even as far-reaching as Ben Affleck’s movie version of Daredevil, could possibly make an appearance in the film.
While Marvel will be hoping to keep as many of its cameos under wraps as possible, three and half months is a long time when it comes to keeping Marvel secrets, and we could see some unexpected news slip out before Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness arrives on May 6th.