Disney has all but confirmed the rumors of Spider-Man 3 introducing a live-action spider-verse after dropping new information about the upcoming sequel Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Given its title, it was obvious that Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness would be delving into a multiverse storyline of its own. It had also recently been reported that Benedict Cumberbatch would be appearing as Doctor Strange in the third Spider-Man movie, further fueling the well-publicized rumors of a new spider-verse.

Now, Disney has officially revealed that Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness "ties to WandaVision and the next Spider-Man film." That correlates with the fan speculation that Doctor Strange that the multiverse would be playing a big part in the story of Spider-Man 3. It also sounds like Spidey and maybe some other characters from the spider-verse could be appearing in Doctor Strange 2 as well, but that hasn't yet been confirmed.

As for who will be appearing in the second Doctor Strange movie, Disney has also confirmed its cast. Of course, Benedict will be playing the titular superhero, reprising the role from the first Doctor Strange and the Avengers movies. The cast will also bring back Elizabeth Olsen as Scarlet Witch, Benedict Wong as Wong, Chiwetel Ejiofor as Karl Mordo, and Rachel McAdams as Christine Palmer. Additionally, Xochitl Gomez will play America Chavez, the superhero known as Miss America in the comics.

Sam Raimi is directing Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, stepping into the project after original director Scott Derrickson stepped down earlier this year. This is very exciting for longtime Marvel fans, as Raimi is well known for helming the original three Spider-Man movies with Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst. According to rampant rumors, Maguire and Dunst are both in talks to appear in Spider-Man 3 by way of the spider-verse. If the two also manage to appear in Doctor Strange 2, it would serve as a reunion with Raimi, who had helmed them over the course of three previous Spider-Man movies.

Spider-Man 3 is also reportedly bringing in Raimi's Spider-Man 2 star Alfred Molina to reprise his role as Doctor Octopus. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 star Jamie Foxx will also be in the movie to play Electro after the actor revealed to his followers online that he was set for the movie. His co-stars Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone are also rumored to be in the sequel, as is Daredevil star Charlie Cox to potentially reprise his role from the Netflix series.

Filming has already begun on Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. As a part of Phase Four of the MCU, the anticipated sequel is currently scheduled to premiere in theaters on March 25, 2022, just a few months after the release of Spider-Man 3 in late 2021. Other Phase Four movies on the board are Black Widow, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, and Eternals in 2021 with Thor: Love and Thunder arriving in May 2022. This news comes to us from Disney on Twitter.