In the wake of thetrailerfor the franchise-cappingAvengers: Endgame, Marvel has started looking far beyond Thanos' snap heard ‘round the universe. First, some footage of a very much alive Peter Paker popped up in theSpider-Man: Far From Hometrailerthat debuted in Brazil, and nowTHRreports that the comic book movie giant is finalizing a deal for aDoctor Strangesequel.Scott Derricksonwill return as director after helming and co-writing the firstStrangefilm in 2016, with a search for a new writer set to kick off soon.Benedict Cumberbatchwill reportedly return as the fancy-caped master of the mystical arts, as willBenedict Wong’s Wong and, most likely,Rachel McAdams’ Dr. Christine Palmer, assuming she’s not currently sitting in a dustpan somewhere.
Marvel is reportedly planning on a spring 2020 production date, which would set theDoctor Strangesequel on a path toward a May 2021 release date.
The character was last seen inAvengers: Infinity War, blowing away in the wind along with half of all life in the universe. But the Russo Brothers are setting Stephen Strange up as a mighty important component ofAvengers: Endgame; he is, after all, the only person who saw the one in approximately 14 million alternate universes in which the Avengers defeated Thanos.
As for the character’s standalone films,Doctor Strange—which Derrickson co-wrote withJon SpaihtsandC. Robert Cargill—has one of the worst potential-to-results ratios in MCU history. Strange is one of Marvel’s trippiest characters, whose universe-hopping, soul-floating powers offer the chance to truly get weird with it on-screen. But the 2016 film sticks closer to the Marvel Movie Formula harder than any other film in the MCU, with an end result that’s both predictableandboring. It doesn’t help that the script squanders the greatMads Mikkelsonin one of Marvel’s most one-note villain roles.
But hey, a lot can change betweenCaptain Marvel’s July 20, 2025 release date and 2021. First, we got to get ol' Stevie Strange into one piece again. And what do you thinkChiwetel Ejiofor’s Mordo has been up to since that post-credits scene?
