Credit: Marvel StudiosDoctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022) will be the 28th movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and is set to be the most epic yet. The trailers promise a mind-bending adventure, as Dr Stephen Strange/Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) faces the Multiverse.
The movie is a sequel to Doctor Strange (2016), but appears to follow on from the events of Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), in which the titular wizard tampers with the Multiverse while trying to help Peter Parker/Spider-Man, whose identity has been revealed to the world.
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However, the spell backfires, and instead of Peter’s secret being restored, enemies from other dimensions, such as Norman Osborn/Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe) and Dr Otto Octavius/Dr Octopus (Alfred Molina) from the Sam Raimi Spider-Man trilogy, enter Peter’s dimension.
While the day is ultimately saved, owing thanks to the jaw-dropping arrival of Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield, both of whom reprise their roles as Peter Parker/Spider-Man, and everyone’s memory of both Tom Holland‘s identities are wiped, tears have been left across the Multiverse.
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It’s these events that serve as the catalyst to Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. The upcoming sequel also follows on from the events of the MCU series Loki (2021), as well as WandaVision (2021), with Elizabeth Olsen reprising her role as Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch.
Now, just when you thought Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness couldn’t be shaping up to be more epic, the reported runtime for the movie has been revealed. The first Doctor Strange is 115 minutes in length, however, the 2022 sequel is reportedly a whopping 148 minutes!
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With the exception of Avengers: Endgame (2019), which is the longest MCU movie yet, at 181 minutes, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness‘ runtime isn’t too dissimilar to the following movies, whose runtimes are also listed below:
- Marvel’s The Avengers (2012) – 143 minutes
- Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015) – 141 minutes
- Captain America: Civil War (2016) – 147 minutes
- Avengers: Infinity War (2018) – 149 minutes
- Eternals (2021) – 156 minutes
- Spider-Man: No Way Home – 148 minutes
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Just like Spider-Man: No Way Home, Marvel fans are expecting some epic cameos in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, which is largely due to the concept of the Multiverse itself. In the 2021 Spider-Man sequel, this world-changing plot device allowed for plenty.
Rumored cameos include Wolverine (Hugh Jackman), and Dr Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart), however, the latter actor has since confirmed that he isn’t even familiar with the character of Doctor Strange. He will, however, be appearing in the movie, in an undisclosed role.
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Whether or not we’ll be seeing surprise cameos remains to be seen, but with the reported 148-minute runtime, the movie will have plenty of time to potentially bring in even more non-MCU Marvel franchises and wow fans in the same way Spider-Man: No Way Home did.
The movie stars Benedict Cumberbatch (Dr Stephen Strange/Doctor Strange), Elizabeth Olsen (Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch), Chiwetel Ejiofor (Karl Mordo), Benedict Wong (Wong), Xochitl Gomez (America Chavez), Michael Stuhlbarg (Nicodemus West), and Rachel McAdams (Christine Palmer). Original Spider-Man trilogy director Sam Raimi is at the helm.
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Benedict Cumberbatch recently said that he believes the movie will be on the “same level” as Spider-Man: No Way Home, which to date has made over $1.8 billion at the global box office.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness releases in theaters on May 6, 2022.
Are you excited for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness?