Ranking Every Major Cameo From Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness
Going into the release of "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness," much of the hype surrounding the film had involved speculation about various cameos from characters throughout the Marvel multiverse. Now that the Sam Raimi-directed flick has arrived (and we can all talk spoilers, which are to follow), viewers have seen some big cameos, though the majority of them are built into one particular scene, and most of the movie is wisely focused on the stories of Strange, Scarlet Witch, and America Chavez.
As a chance to further expand the Marvel Cinematic Universe into an even bigger multiverse, the cameos are generally enjoyable but something of a mixed bag. The fact that many of these characters appear in "Multiverse of Madness" and meet less-than-ideal fates is sure to be controversial, but Raimi's audacity in playing around with what could have been merely fan-service is nevertheless something to be admired — and awfully gutsy for one of the year's biggest mainstream-audience-targeting films of the year. Not counting variants of the primary "Doctor Strange" characters, here's how the nine major surprise cameos throughout "Multiverse of Madness" rank, from most underwhelming to most entertaining.
Clea
In the mid-credits scene of "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness," Doctor Strange is greeted by on the street by a woman with long blonde hair dressed in purple, insisting he go with her to fix a new multiversal incursion. This character, played by Charlize Theron, receives no real introduction, which is sure to confuse a lot of viewers not familiar with the "Doctor Strange" comics.
The credits confirm that Theron's character is Clea, the Sorcerer Supreme of the Dark Dimension and niece of Dormammu, the villain from the first movie. There's certainly plenty of potential for Clea to be a great character in future movies (especially since Strange and Clea get romantic in the comics), and the idea of Theron joining the MCU might be enough to get even the most confused non-comic readers intrigued by this sequel tease. All this potential, however, doesn't make the cameo itself any more coherent. This is ultimately one of the MCU's least interesting — and briefest — sequel teases ever seen.
Rintrah
Rintrah is arguably less a cameo than just a very minor supporting character, but his presence is odd enough that he'll likely inspire the same "Who is that?" responses as the more obscure cameos in the film. Rintrah is a green minotaur who just hangs around as one of the sorcerers at Kamar-Taj.
Since Rintrah receives no proper introduction in "Multiverse of Madness," some viewers might wonder if they forgot him from the first "Doctor Strange" movie, but nope. Neither he nor any member of his alien species, the R'Vaalians, have appeared in any of the MCU series or movies before now. He's just there because Marvel had the extra effects budget for a CGI minotaur, perhaps. In a way, it's kind of impressive that Marvel Studios has made audiences so accustomed to comic book weirdness that a giant green minotaur alien wizard can just show up without even being remarked upon.
Ultron
The robots at the Illuminati headquarters don't look exactly like the Ultron MCU fans are familiar with from Earth-616, but one of them can be heard making commands in the name of Ultron when Scarlet Witch first makes her attack on the HQ. The credits confirm these robots are indeed meant to be alternate universe versions of Ultron, played by the character's "What If...?" voice actor Ross Marquand.
The Ultron robots may just be a minor background detail in "Multiverse of Madness," but their presence does present some interesting world-building for this alternate universe. Clearly they didn't try to kill all humans like 616-Ultron did, but a general mystery remains about just how benevolent the Illuminati truly are. Were they created by Tony Stark like in 616, or do they have another origin? Perhaps they're a project of Reed Richards and the Baxter Foundation (of whom this universe's Christine Baxter says she works), or maybe a Hank Pym creation like in the original comics?
Maria Rambeau
On Earth-616 in the MCU, Maria Rambeau (played by Lashana Lynch) was Carol Danvers' best friend on Earth and the eventual founder of S.W.O.R.D. "WandaVision" revealed she died of cancer during the Blip, so it's nice to see her again as the Captain Marvel of the Illuminati universe. Like all the members of the Illuminati, however, she's killed by Scarlet Witch fairly easily, and her possible death (we see a statue fall on her) is perhaps the most frustrating of the bunch.
To be clear, Sam Raimi's willingness to risk fan anger by killing off characters is one of the strong points of "Multiverse of Madness," but the way Rambeau's death is handled is the weakest of the bunch. Captain Marvel is supposed to be one of the strongest superheroes in existence, yet this version of her is apparently dispatched quite easily. Surely there could have been a more intense and scary death scene that didn't seem to minimize her power in the process.
Captain Carter
The Disney+ animated series "What If...?" has built up Captain Carter, a Peggy Carter variant who took the super serum instead of Steve Rogers, as an important character. Between that and appearances of her shield in advertisements, it's not particularly surprising but still really cool to see Hayley Atwell get a chance to play Captain Carter in live-action as part of "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness."
Like all of the Illuminati cameos in the film, Captain Carter's screen time is fairly brief, being killed by Scarlet Witch not too long after her introduction. Even so, the time spent focused on her is structured effectively, getting a fun action scene paralleling Rogers' famous "I can do this all day" moment before being killed in the most brutal and ironic way possible — by her own shield. It's not confirmed whether this is the same Captain Carter as seen in "What If...?" or a different variant.
Black Bolt
Few viewers watched, and even fewer liked, the "Inhumans" TV show. As such, Anson Mount's Black Bolt showing up as part of the Illuminati in "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness" comes as a surprise. Bolt's emergence from a not-particularly-beloved property might be why — out of all the Illuminati — Strange seems to target his sardonic humor on him, pointing out that Blackagar Boltagon is a ridiculous name. His death is also the most gleefully gruesome, and makes him seem not all too bright.
For those who didn't watch "Inhumans" or read the comics, the movie explains that Black Bolt's words can kill; in a flashback to the Illuminati dispatching their universe's Doctor Strange, it is his "I'm sorry" that finishes the not-so-good doctor off. This power is then turned on him by the Scarlet Witch, who cleverly removes his mouth just as he is about to speak. The sound he was going to make instead gets locked inside his skull, which explodes from the inside, in what might be the goriest onscreen death of any PG-13 superhero movie.
Mister Fantastic
Casting John Krasinski as Mister Fantastic in "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness" is either the ultimate fan service or the ultimate troll. With no official news yet as to his casting for the MCU's eventual "Fantastic Four" movie, putting Krasinski in the role of the team's super-genius leader matches up with extremely popular fan castings and appropriately enough, is reminiscent of how online fans lobbied for Michael Chiklis as The Thing once upon a time, then seemed ... well, underwhelmed by Michael Chiklis as The Thing. However, there's no guarantee yet this casting will stick for future movies, considering Krasinski's Mister Fantastic dies.
He's the second Illuminati member to be killed by Scarlet Witch after Black Bolt. His elastic powers stand no chance against Wanda's magic; she essentially shreds his whole body into string cheese. If this is the last we see of Krasinski in the role, then Sam Raimi is a master of trolling. If he's back in the main 616 universe, however, this could be an unorthodox introduction to one of the next great MCU heroes — like John Travolta in "Pulp Fiction," audiences will have watched him die before he gets most of his best moments.
Professor X
Yes, as everyone suspected, that voice in the trailer was Patrick Stewart as Charles Xavier. Rather than reprising the incarnation of the character he played in the 20th Century Fox "X-Men" films (and gave a meaningful farewell to in "Logan"), however, Stewart is playing the version of Professor X from the '90s "X-Men" animated series, as evidenced by the design of his chair and the music that plays during his introduction. So, anybody wondering how "X-Men '97" is meant to fit into the MCU have their answer.
Stewart as Xavier is a perfect bit of fan-service, one which will appeal to multiple generations of Marvel fans. The character's psychic powers make him seemingly the ideal match to face the mental manipulations of the Scarlet Witch. If any of the Illuminati could win the battle against her, it would have been him — which makes his ultimate death and defeat all the more intense and upsetting.
Bruce Campbell
For all the Marvel fan-service scattered throughout "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness," the best thing about the movie is just how strongly director Sam Raimi's auteur sensibility shines throughout the whole thing. This means wild cinematography, wacky funhouse horror, and, of course, it wouldn't be a Sam Raimi movie without a cameo from Bruce Campbell.
Campbell made his big break starring as Ash Williams, the hero of Raimi's "The Evil Dead" series, and the actor continues to be invited to cameo in often ridiculous parts of the director's other films. His part in "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness" is among the most ridiculous: a parallel-universe pizza ball salesman named Pizza Poppa whom Doctor Strange afflicts with a curse that forces the man to beat himself up — clearly, an "Evil Dead" reference. The film's post-credits scene catches up with Pizza Poppa as the curse finally wears off, a funny bit that's strangely a much more satisfying note to end on than the mid-credits sequel tease.