Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness Release Date, Cast, Villain

There are many theories as to what might be behind the problems with the multiverse in the new "Doctor Strange" film. The ending of Marvel's first Disney+ series, "WandaVision," which sees Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) use chaos magic to inadvertently rewrite reality, revealed that Wanda's powers surpass those of the Sorcerer Supreme, and that it is her destiny to destroy the world. Kevin Feige confirmed at the 2019 Comic-Con panel that the events of "WandaVision" will "tie directly into" the new "Doctor Strange" project, so it's possible Wanda's actions have something to do with the situation. But then there's "Loki," another Disney+ show in which the protagonists' climactic confrontation with "He Who Remains," aka Kang the Conqueror, results in new branches of reality splitting from the primary timeline, potentially allowing the multiverse to take shape.

And of course, there's Doctor Strange himself, who makes several ill-advised decisions in "Spider-Man: No Way Home," beginning with a spell that accidentally summons both interdimensional villains and various Peters Parker and ending with another spell that makes everyone forget Spider-Man's secret identity. Strange gaslighting the entire human race seems likely to have a dangerous outcome, and the new trailer certainly seems to indicate that he's directly responsible for, at the very least, "open[ing] the doorway between universes."

Sam Raimi is no stranger to either superheroes or horror — his previous work includes the original "Spider-Man" trilogy, the "Evil Dead" trilogy, and many other horror films and comic-inspired projects. In a 2022 Empire interview, Feige explained that when searching for a director, their team thought scoring Raimi "would be incredible," but didn't think there was any chance of it happening. However, Raimi ultimately agreed to set up a meeting and the enthusiasm he had for the project made the choice a no-brainer on both sides.

Horror filmmaker Scott Derrickson, who directed the first "Doctor Strange" film, was originally going to return for the sequel before leaving in January 2020 (he remains an executive producer on "Multiverse of Madness"). "We love Scott and I think Scott feels the same," Feige told Empire. "Nobody believes it, but it was just creative differences." Neither Marvel nor Derrickson himself seem to harbor any ill will around this decision, and both appear excited to see the project come together with Raimi in the director's chair.

Xochitl Gomez makes her Marvel debut as America Chavez in "Multiverse of Madness," and while we might not know much her exact role in the MCU, we do have some significant background information on her character from the comics. America boasts superhuman strength, speed, and durability, as well as flight, but her signature power is the ability to open star-shaped portals that allow her to travel instantly across the multiverse, which makes sense considering the movie in which she's being introduced. She's been a member of various incarnations of the Avengers as well as other teams like the Ultimates.

America originally believed herself to have been born in an extradimensional paradise called the Utopian Parallel, which was responsible for giving her superpowers and which her mothers sacrificed themselves to save. Recently, however, this story was been called into question with the appearance of America's previously unknown sister, who told America that the Utopian Parallel was actually a private island research facility on Earth, and America's powers are actually the result of genetic experimentation (we're guessing "Multiverse of Madness" will go with the better-known version of the backstory, but you never know).

Regardless, America brings some much-needed LGBTQ+ representation to the MCU, as she is a lesbian and appears to be sporting a gay pride pin on her costume in the trailers, as well as the words "amor es amor" scribbled on her infamous American flag jean jacket.

In March 2019, after Disney acquired 21^st Century Fox, Marvel Studios obtained the film rights to the X-Men as well as the Fantastic Four. Neither have yet been integrated into the MCU, but if Patrick Stewart really is returning as Charles Xavier, the door for the mutants' arrival has potentially been kicked wide open, leading to all sorts of possibilities. Fans have theorized, for example, about Evan Peters returning as Quicksilver (aka Wanda's brother, Pietro). Peters, who played Quicksilver in the Fox films, had previously shown up as in "WandaVision" as a red herring — the MCU version of Pietro, played by Aaron Taylor-Johnson, was killed in "Avengers: Age of Ultron — but if we've learned anything from Marvel Studios' past work, it's that every little detail is intentional.

Eagle-eyed fans were also quick to point out a possible Easter egg related to Ryan Reynolds' Deadpool in the newest promotional poster for "Multiverse of Madness." Among the shards of glass surrounding Doctor Strange, there is one that contains what looks like Deadpool doing his iconic "shush" pose. While this might just be the Marvel team's way of having some fun with the idea of the multiverse, this theory actually holds some weight. In 2021, Kevin Feige made headlines when he confirmed that the next Deadpool film will be part of the MCU. Whether or not this means he'll join the Avengers on the big screen, fans are waiting with bated breath for what's next.

If we've learned anything from "Spider-Man: No Way Home" and "Loki," it's that it can be quite disorienting to come face-to-face with another version of yourself. The newest trailer for "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness," as well as some newly released Funko Pop figurines, seem to confirm the inclusion of many variants of our lead protagonist, including "Sinister Strange," "Defender Strange," "Supreme Strange," and "Zombie Strange." Sinister Strange will most likely prove to be an adversary to our trusted Sorcerer Supreme. Defender Strange is seen with striped hair pulled back into a ponytail and appears to be working alongside America Chavez as a protector. Supreme Strange dons the same high-necked cape that has grown to be synonymous with Doctor Strange, but colored blue instead of red (he also doesn't have a goatee). Finally, Zombie Strange appears as an undead version of the superhero, strikingly similar to the same character from Disney+ series, "What If...?"

There's also at least one alternate version of Wanda, shown confronting her other self in what appears to be their wrecked Westview home. This could be a sign of Wanda's consciousness breaking into two following the traumatic events of "WandaVision," but a variant is probably more likely. The fact that there's a version of Wanda in street clothes confronting the fully-costumed Scarlet Witch suggests the possibility of there being an evil version of our favorite antihero, possibly one that was corrupted by the Darkhold — and that might be the best possible outcome.

It's the overarching question hanging above "Multiverse of Madness": Who is the ultimate villain of the story? Wanda Maximoff herself (or a variant of her) is the obvious answer, but there definitely seems to be at least one evil Doctor Strange in the trailer, an idea that harkens back to "What If...?" There's also Kang the Conqueror, of course, who invented the Time Variance Authority in order to maintain the "proper" flow of the Sacred Timeline, and who promised that other versions of himself would come invade the multiverse after his death. Another possibility is Chthon, the original author of the Darkhold in the comics, who might be among the shards of glass in the poster and has a comic book connection to the Scarlet Witch.

And then there's Nightmare, the original Doctor Strange villain, who rules the Nightmare Realm and feeds off the fear of mortal sleepers. In the trailer, Doctor Strange explains that he is having the same nightmare every night, and original director Scott Derrickson was very interested in including Nightmare in the story going forward and even tried to include him in the first film. Despite rewrites and reshoots, it's always possible that Sam Raimi kept Nightmare as the central villain when he took over on "Multiverse of Madness."