For a long while, there have been a number of rumors that Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness would be one of the longest movies in the entire Marvel franchise, but with tickets about to go on sale, new information has suggested that those expecting a bladder busting epic runtime are going to be slightly disappointed. The film has been listed on a number of sites previously with lengths of 148 minutes, 136 minutes and other times in between, but the official time seems to come in much shorter than that at 126 minutes.

Benedict Cumberbatch will lead an ensemble cast in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, which sees Strange following up his dabbling in the multiverse from Spider-Man No Way Home by breaking reality in a way that is serious enough to have him brought before The Illuminati to answer for his actions. Along the way, he will seek out the help of Wanda Maximoff, who appears as more than one variant of herself, meet the multiverse traversing America Chavez, and face many unknown worlds. That’s a lot to pack into a two-hour runtime, but it seems that is what we are about to get.

The initial reports of a 148-minute runtime may have seemed quite outlandish at one point in Marvel’s history, but given that recent entries such as Eternals and Spider-Man: No Way Home have clocked in around the 150-minute mark and adding in the epic nature of the plot, it was a very plausible possibility. While there will be many worlds being explored in the movie, new characters to introduce, various cameos and a lot of conflicts to resolve, it doesn’t look like the film is going to have a lot of filler, which in some ways can only be a good thing.

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Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness Will Open Many Multiversal Doors

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Marvel Studios

So far in Marvel’s Phase Four, there have been a number of projects that have scratched the surface of the multiverse. Loki appeared to break the timeline with the death of He Who Remains, then the mulitiverse was breached and restored in Spider-Man: No Way Home, but in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness it looks like this time things may not be all nicely wrapped up by the end of the movie and the ramifications could be felt throughout the MCU for some time to come.

Of course, there is very little known about the exact plot details of the film, there is plenty of speculation about who could make an appearance in Doctor Strange’s latest outing and what it could mean to the future of the MCU. With many believing that the film will open the door to the introduction of the X-Men and Fantastic Four into the MCU, it is clear that there will be more wild and far-ranging theories in the coming month until we all finally discover what dangers are lurking on the other side of the multiverse for the Doctor and his companions.