One of the most talked about moments from Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness came when John Krasinski appeared as Reed Richards. For years, fans had been demanding Krasinski get the role of Mister Fantastic when the Fantastic Four arrive in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Needless to say, many were ecstatic to see Krasinski physically appear in that role in Doctor Strange 2, as his role had not been announced ahead of time.
The movie is now available to purchase digitally, and with the home release comes a new audio commentary track. Per The Direct, the commentary features director Sam Raimi sharing how the Krasinski cameo came to be. Because this is the multiverse, it was apparently pretty easy for Marvel to allow for this cameo to happen, as it doesn't necessarily mean that Krasinski must also play the MCU's Variant of the character (although, that could still theoretically happen). With that in mind, Marvel had also noticed the fan demand for the casting and correctly surmised that it would make for an incredible, satisfying cameo.
"It’s so funny that Kevin [Feige] cast John [Krasinski] because the fans had a dream of who the perfect Reed Richards would be. And because this is an alternate universe, I think Kevin said, ‘Let’s make that dream come true.’ I’ve always really enjoyed all of his performances.’”
Screenwriter Michael Waldron also spoke about how much of an "honor" it was to write for this character int he MCU while giving praise to Krasinski in his work bringing that role to life.
"Reed Richards is my favorite Marvel Comics character, so it was a real honor to get to write his first entry in the MCU. John’s such an amazing performer and such a great partner in bringing this role to life for the first time.”
When Will We See Reed Richards Again?
It has been confirmed that a new Fantastic Four movie is in the works with plans for the film to close out Phase Four of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. No cast has yet been announced for that movie. Many fans may hope that Krasinski will play the MCU's Reed Richards as well following his appearance as a Variant in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. That is possible to happen, but as of now, Krasinski hasn't been officially announced as a part of that film.
There have been several previous films to feature the Reed Richards character. He was played by Ioan Gruffudd in 2005's Fantastic Four along with its 2007 sequel, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer. A 2015 reboot reimagined the role with Miles Teller. Alex Hyde-White had previously portrayed Reed Richards in a Fantastic Four movie that was filmed in 1994, but it was canceled before release. Time will tell who the stars of the next movie are.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is streaming on Disney+ and is available to purchase digitally.