49 Fun Facts About Doctor Strange Movies

Who plays Dr. Stephen Strange?

Benedict Cumberbatch plays Stephen Strange; he first passed because of his 2015 stage run as Hamlet, so Marvel pushed the release to November 2016 to get him.

What is Stephen Strange's profession before the accident?

Strange is a brilliant, arrogant neurosurgeon whose hands are shattered in a car crash, ending his surgical career and driving him to seek a cure.

Who directed Doctor Strange (2016)?

Scott Derrickson, director of the horror film Sinister, was hired in June 2014 and co-wrote the script with Jon Spaihts and C. Robert Cargill.

Who plays the Ancient One?

Tilda Swinton plays the Ancient One, reimagined as a Celtic woman; the character is a Tibetan man in the comics, and co-writer C. Robert Cargill called adapting him faithfully an unwinnable Kobayashi Maru.

Who plays the villain Kaecilius?

Mads Mikkelsen, Le Chiffre in Casino Royale, plays Kaecilius, a former Kamar-Taj student who steals pages from the Ancient One's book in search of eternal life.

Which paraplegic who regained the use of his legs points Strange toward Kamar-Taj?

Jonathan Pangborn, played by Benjamin Bratt, is the paraplegic who walked again after learning sorcery at Kamar-Taj and sends Strange there to seek his own cure.

In which city is Kamar-Taj located?

Kamar-Taj is in Kathmandu, Nepal, where the crew shot on location in November 2015, months after the April earthquake; the comics had placed it in Tibet.

Earth's magical shield is generated by three Sanctums in New York and which two other cities?

The Sanctums are in New York, London and Hong Kong; Kaecilius destroys the London Sanctum first, then attacks the New York one that Strange ends up defending.

What relic does Strange secretly learn to bend time with?

The Eye of Agamotto, which Strange uses to rewind a half-eaten apple, turns out to house the Time Stone, one of the six Infinity Stones.

Which entity, from a realm where time does not exist, does Kaecilius contact?

Dormammu, ruler of a timeless realm, is the being Kaecilius serves; the actor playing Strange also supplied the character's motion capture and part of his voice.

How does Strange defeat the film's cosmic big bad?

The entity kills him over and over, then gives up and takes the zealots with him.

What has the Ancient One secretly been drawing power from to prolong her life?

The Ancient One has secretly drawn power from the Dark Dimension for centuries, breaking the rules she teaches; Kaecilius exposes that hypocrisy to Strange to justify his own rebellion.

What does Mordo tell Pangborn in the post-credits scene?

Chiwetel Ejiofor's Mordo was deliberately not villainous at first, unlike in the comics.

Which Asgardian appears in the mid-credits scene of Doctor Strange?

Thor appears in the mid-credits scene, drinking an ever-refilling beer in the New York Sanctum while Strange agrees to help him find Odin; Thor: Ragnarok replays the scene.

What is Rachel McAdams's character, Christine Palmer, known as in the comics?

Christine Palmer was one of the characters in Marvel's 1972 comic Night Nurse; Derrickson chose her over Strange's comic-book love interest to keep him tethered to ordinary New York life.

Under what working title was Doctor Strange shot?

Doctor Strange was shot under the working title Checkmate; cinematographer Ben Davis described the film as Marvel's Fantasia for its psychedelic, Ditko-inspired visuals.

Which mobile video game did Derrickson cite as a visual influence, alongside M. C. Escher?

Derrickson named the puzzle game Monument Valley, with its Escher-style impossible architecture, as an influence on the film's folding cityscapes, alongside Steve Ditko's comics and surrealist art.

Who composed the score for Doctor Strange (2016)?

Michael Giacchino, composer of Up and Rogue One, scored Doctor Strange (2016); the score was recorded at Abbey Road Studios.

Whose 1989 script, co-written with Stan Lee, had Strange fight the villain on Easter Island?

Alex Cox, director of Repo Man and Sid and Nancy, co-wrote a 1989 Doctor Strange script with Stan Lee whose climax pitted Strange against the villain on Easter Island.

Where did Doctor Strange hold its world premiere in October 2016?

Doctor Strange held its world premiere in Hong Kong on 13 October 2016, three weeks before its US release on 4 November.

Roughly how much did Doctor Strange (2016) gross worldwide?

Doctor Strange (2016) grossed about $678 million worldwide on a $165 million budget, then the biggest MCU solo-character introduction, ahead of Iron Man's $585 million.

Doctor Strange (2016) earned an Academy Award nomination in which category?

Doctor Strange was nominated for Best Visual Effects at the 89th Academy Awards, its only nomination, and lost to The Jungle Book.

What is Stan Lee reading on the bus in his Doctor Strange cameo?

Stan Lee's cameo has him laughing on a bus over The Doors of Perception, Aldous Huxley's 1954 account of a mescaline trip, a nod to the film's psychedelic visuals.

Who directed Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness?

Sam Raimi, who had not directed a feature since Oz the Great and Powerful (2013), took over in February 2020 after the first film's director left over creative differences.

Who is the main villain of Multiverse of Madness?

The Scarlet Witch, Wanda Maximoff, is the villain: corrupted by a book of dark magic, she hunts America Chavez for the power to reach a universe where her sons exist.

Who plays America Chavez?

Xochitl Gomez, previously seen in Netflix's The Baby-Sitters Club, plays America Chavez, a teenager from the Utopian Parallel who punches star-shaped portals between universes.

What is the name of the corrupting book of dark magic Wanda uses?

The Darkhold, the Book of the Damned, corrupts Wanda after she takes it from Agatha Harkness; its light counterpart, the Book of Vishanti, is what Strange and Chavez seek.

What is the term for using the dark book to possess your counterpart in another universe?

Dreamwalking is the forbidden spell that lets a sorcerer possess their counterpart in another universe; Strange dreamwalks into his own corpse at the climax and later sprouts a third eye.

Which mountain is the source of the dark book's power?

Mount Wundagore is where the dark book's spells were first carved into the walls; Wanda collapses the mountain at the end, destroying every copy of the book across the multiverse.

What is the designation of the universe where Strange meets the Illuminati?

Strange and Chavez land on Earth-838, the universe whose Illuminati try Strange for the crimes of his counterpart; its Christine Palmer labels the main MCU reality Earth-616.

Which sorcerer serves as Earth-838's Sorcerer Supreme and hands Strange to the Illuminati?

Karl Mordo, played by Chiwetel Ejiofor, is that universe's Sorcerer Supreme, a different man from the Mordo who walked away at the end of the first film; he drugs Strange with tea before handing him over.

Who plays Professor Charles Xavier in the Illuminati?

Patrick Stewart reprises Charles Xavier, blending his Fox-era Professor X with the 1990s X-Men animated series, complete with its yellow hover-chair and theme music.

Which Illuminati member does Anson Mount play in Multiverse of Madness?

Black Bolt, king of the Inhumans, is played by Anson Mount, reprising his role from the 2017 ABC series; Wanda removes his mouth so his own voice destroys his skull.

Who plays Maria Rambeau, the Illuminati's Captain Marvel, in Multiverse of Madness?

Lashana Lynch plays Maria Rambeau, who in the Illuminati's universe became Captain Marvel instead of Carol Danvers; Lynch reprises her Captain Marvel (2019) role and is killed by Wanda during the massacre.

Why did the Illuminati execute their own universe's Doctor Strange?

An incursion is the collision and destruction of two universes.

Who plays the Pizza Poppa food-stall vendor, a regular Sam Raimi collaborator?

Bruce Campbell, star of the Evil Dead films, plays Pizza Poppa; Strange curses his hand to punch himself, and the post-credits scene shows the spell wearing off three weeks later.

Which actress appears as Clea in the mid-credits scene?

Charlize Theron appears as Clea, Strange's long-time love interest in the comics, in the mid-credits scene, warning him that he has caused an incursion and leading him through a portal.

What is the name of the ponytailed Strange variant killed in the opening scene?

Defender Strange, the ponytailed variant of the opening scene, dies protecting America Chavez from a demon in the space between universes; his corpse is what the main Strange later possesses in the climax.

Who composed the score for Multiverse of Madness?

Danny Elfman scored Multiverse of Madness, reuniting with its director after Darkman (1990), A Simple Plan (1998) and Oz the Great and Powerful (2013).

Which Disney+ series had writer Michael Waldron run before the sequel, laying the multiverse groundwork?

Michael Waldron was head writer of Loki's first season, which introduced the Time Variance Authority and shattered the Sacred Timeline, before writing the Doctor Strange sequel.

Roughly how much did Multiverse of Madness gross worldwide?

Multiverse of Madness grossed about $956 million worldwide, the fourth-highest total of 2022 behind Avatar: The Way of Water, Top Gun: Maverick and Jurassic World Dominion.

Multiverse of Madness's $187.4M US opening beat which earlier film to become Sam Raimi's biggest debut?

Spider-Man 3 had opened to $151 million in 2007.

Why was Multiverse of Madness not released in Saudi Arabia?

Saudi officials said the film was not banned; Disney simply refused to cut a reference to Chavez's two mothers, 'barely 12 seconds' of dialogue, so it went unreleased there.

Under what working title was Multiverse of Madness shot from November 2020?

Multiverse of Madness shot under the code name Stellar Vortex; filming began at Longcross Studios in November 2020, paused for the January 2021 UK lockdown and wrapped in April 2021.

Who plays Reed Richards among the Illuminati in Multiverse of Madness?

John Krasinski plays Reed Richards, the Illuminati's Mister Fantastic, fulfilling a long-running fan casting; Wanda shreds him into ribbons during the Illuminati massacre.

Which Disney+ series did Kevin Feige say would directly set up Multiverse of Madness?

Kevin Feige said WandaVision would lead directly into the sequel; Elizabeth Olsen's Wanda carries the grief and the dark book she took in the series finale into the film.

Which carmaker built the supercar Strange crashes in Doctor Strange (2016)?

Lamborghini built Strange's car, a grey Huracán LP 610-4; the carmaker supplied several Huracáns for the night-time crash that ends his surgical career.

Which Kamar-Taj master, missing a hand, demonstrates that sorcery does not depend on hands?

Master Hamir, who has only one hand, conjures a spell in front of Strange to show that sorcery does not depend on whole hands; Topo Wresniwiro plays him.

Which TV comedy creator wrote uncredited dialogue for Doctor Strange's 2016 reshoots?

Dan Harmon, creator of Community and co-creator of Rick and Morty, wrote additional dialogue for the 2016 reshoots; Kevin Feige said the contribution was too small for a screen credit.