After nearly six years since he debuted in his origin story back in 2016, Benedict Cumberbatch’s Doctor Strange is getting his own sequel, and he’s diving into the alternate realities of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
“Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” brings back the ex-Sorcerer Supreme (he’s since lost the magical title on a technicality) for a terrifying, cross-dimensional adventure, helmed by legendary horror director Sam Raimi. Original “Doctor Strange” director Scott Derrickson was set to take over the sequel, but he parted ways due to creative differences, paving the way for Raimi to return. After helming the original Tobey Maguire “Spider-Man” trilogy in the 2000s and changing the the comic book genre forever, Raimi has not touched a superhero movie since, and his last directorial effort was 2013’s “Oz the Great and Powerful.”
With Raimi at the reins, “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” is poised to be the MCU’s first horror movie, though it still retains a PG-13 rating. Marvel movies and Disney+ series like “Loki” and “Spider-Man: No Way Home” have breached the topic of the multiverse, but Doctor Strange is plunging right in, with Elizabeth Olsen’s Wanda Maximoff, aka the Scarlett Witch, at his side. The movie also introduces the young, new superhero America Chavez, played by Xochitl Gomez, who wields the power to cross into different worlds of the multiverse.
Doctor Strange and Wanda Maximoff have appeared in plenty of other MCU projects, including the latest “Avengers” movies, and there has been plenty of multiverse madness already, so here is everything you should know from the MCU before seeing the sequel.
WARNING: The following contains spoilers for several titles in the MCU, but not for “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.”
“Doctor Strange” (2016)
Dr. Stephen Strange gets a quick shout out in 2014’s “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” but he makes his real MCU debut in this film from director Scott Derrickson. When we meet him (as played by Benedict Cumberbatch), Strange is a brilliant and arrogant New York City neurosurgeon who thinks nothing of humiliating his less-than-brilliant colleague Dr. West (Michael Stuhlbarg) while saving West’s patient.
But while driving to a conference, Strange gets into a horrific car accident that shatters his hands — and his surgery career. In desperation, he breaks off his shaky relationship with another colleague, Dr. Christine Palmer (Rachel McAdams), and seeks out the Ancient One (Tilda Swinton), who teaches him to become a master of the mystic arts in her Nepali compound, Kamar-Taj. In her very first lesson, the Ancient One tells — and shows — Strange an “infinite number” of universes within the “multiverse.”
At Kamar-Taj, Strange befriends two fellow sorcerers: Wong (Benedict Wong), the acerbic librarian, and Karl Mordo (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a black-and-white thinker who becomes disillusioned with how Strange and the Ancient One bend their moral codes to reach their ends. Strange also comes into possession of the Cloak of Levitation and the Eye of Agamotto, which contains the Time Stone and allows Strange to manipulate the flow of time.
The Ancient One dies fighting the movie’s villain, Kaecilius (Mads Mikkelsen), who has pledged himself to the Dark Dimension and its master, Dormammu. Strange ultimately defeats Kaecilius and becomes master of the New York City sanctum, but Mordo falls out with Strange and pledges to rid the world of sorcerers and magic.
Where you can watch it: Stream on Disney+; digital rental or purchase.
"Avengers: Infinity War" (2018) and "Avengers: Endgame" (2019)
After teaming up with Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) and Spider-Man (Tom Holland) in “Infinity War,” Doctor Strange finds himself captured and taken to space as Thanos’ (Josh Brolin) minions try to pry the Time Stone away from him. The heroes crash land on the planet Titan, where they meet the Guardians of the Galaxy. Before they fight Thanos, Strange explains that he viewed millions of possible future timelines, and there was only one where the Avengers won. And indeed, everyone is ultimately outmatched by Thanos; before Thanos can kill Iron Man, however, Strange gives up the Time Stone in exchange for Tony’s life. Strange tells Tony, “There was no other way.”
During the Battle of Wakanda, Thanos seeks out Vision (Paul Bettany), the synthezoid powered by the Mind Stone, the final piece of the Infinity Gauntlet. In anguish, Wanda Maximoff destroys the Mind Stone — and kills her beloved — so Thanos can’t get his hands on it, but the effort is in vain. Thanos uses Strange’s Time Stone to restore Vision and rip the Mind Stone from his head, killing him permanently. The supervillain then snaps his fingers using the Infinity Gauntlet and erases half of all life in the universe, including Strange, Wanda and most of the Avengers.
Flash forward five years later, and the remaining Avengers manage to travel through time, recover the Infinity Stones and bring back everyone who was blipped out of existence. In the climactic final battle against Thanos, Strange returns and helps teleport every other superhero, Wakandan soldier and Asgardian in the MCU to save the day. However, Wanda discovers that Vision is still dead and nearly kills Thanos all on her own, hinting at the great power residing within her.
Where you can watch it: Stream on Disney+; digital rental or purchase.
“WandaVision” (2021)
Wanda coped with Vision’s death by commandeering the suburban town of Westview and turning it into her own perfect utopia of suburban TV sitcom bliss, recreating a simulation Vision to live with her. Such is the backbone of “WandaVision,” which finds Wanda’s magic so powerful that she even gives “birth” to twins, named Billy and Tommy. They age rapidly into tweens over the course of just a few days, and possess their own superpowers. Wanda is fiercely protective of them, but when she realizes she has to break her spell over Westview — and set its many inhabitants free from mind-control — she also has to let her children go. They can’t exist outside of her spell.
The experience also awakens Wanda’s true nature as an ancient, supremely powerful being known as the Scarlet Witch — a name she learns courtesy of fellow witch Agatha Harkness (Kathryn Hahn). Agatha is also responsible for Wanda coming into possession of the Darkhold, an ancient book of spells considered the most powerful collection of dark magic. “WandaVision” ends with Wanda in a remote cabin studying the Darkhold, and suddenly hearing the voices of her sons scream out to her.
Where you can watch it: Stream on Disney+
"Loki" (2021)
Curiously, although Doctor Strange was learning about the multiverse from the start, according to “Loki,” the multiverse has been kept in check by the Time Variance Authority for… well, it’s not exactly clear for how long, but it seems like it’s been for a good while. Instead, existence has been chugging along on a single timeline pruned of pesky variants by the TVA — until the variant of Loki (Tom Hiddleston) who escapes capture in “Avengers: Endgame” is captured by the metaphysical agency. By the end of the series, Loki’s female variant Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino) kills the head of the TVA, He Who Remains (Jonathan Majors), and the multiverse is borne.
Where you can watch it: Stream on Disney+
"What If…?" (2021)
The first animated project in the MCU, “What If…?” explores alternate timelines in the multiverse, like one where Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell) picks up Captain America’s shield and became Captain Carter, or another where super-powered zombies have taken over the world. In one episode, titled “What If… Doctor Strange Lost His Heart Instead of His Hands?,” an alternate Strange turns to the dark side after Christine Palmer dies and he embarks on a selfish and doomed quest to save her.
This universe’s Christine dies in the same car accident that destroyed the original Strange’s hands and set him down the path to become the Sorcerer Supreme. Overwhelmed by grief, this version of Strange uses the Time Stone to travel back and attempt to save Christine, but he repeatedly fails. The Ancient One explains to Strange that Christine’s death is an “absolute point” that cannot be changed in the timeline. She splits him into a good Strange, who accepts Christine’s death, and an evil Strange, who dubs himself Strange Supreme after he absorbs the powers of dark, mystical creatures. The dark doctor defeats the good version of himself and becomes so consumed by power and arrogance in his quest to save Christine, that he utterly collapses his universe and ends up trapped inside the tiny bubble that is left of it, alone.
Where you can watch it: Stream on Disney+
“Spider-Man: No Way Home” (2021)
“Spider-Man: No Way Home” reveals that Doctor Strange’s absence during the Blip means he’s no longer the Sorcerer Supreme — instead, the role fell to Wong. Without direct oversight from Wong, Strange tries to help Peter Parker (Tom Holland) by casting a spell in which the population will forget that he is Spider-Man. Peter interference during the spell — asking that it not apply to certain loved ones like Aunt May (Marisa Tomei) and MJ (Zendaya) — causes Strange to open up an accidental tear in the multiverse. Several Spider-Man enemies from other universes (i.e. other film franchises) show up, as do two other Peter Parkers (i.e. the ones played by Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield). Ultimately, Strange repairs the multiversal rift by casting a spell that makes everyone forget who Peter Parker is. Strange’s meddling with the multiverse winds up with the world still knowing about Spider-Man, but no one knowing about Peter.
Where you can watch it: Digital rental and purchase
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