73 Fun Facts About Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

Who directed Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness?

Sam Raimi, director of the Evil Dead films, directed the film, signing on in February 2020 after the original director's exit over creative differences; it was his first superhero movie in fifteen years.

Which director left the film in January 2020 citing creative differences?

Scott Derrickson, who directed the 2016 original, left the sequel in January 2020 citing creative differences but stayed on as an executive producer; he went on to make The Black Phone.

Which Loki head writer was hired to write the new script?

Michael Waldron, head writer of the Loki series, was hired in February 2020 to write a new script after the original director's departure; the pandemic delay gave him time to rework it with the new director.

Who plays America Chavez?

Xochitl Gomez plays America Chavez, the teenager whose multiverse-hopping power makes her Wanda's target; her casting was announced in October 2020, a month before filming began.

How does America Chavez travel between universes?

America Chavez travels between universes by punching open star-shaped doorways, a power she cannot control at first: it fires when she is frightened, which is how the opening chase drops her into New York.

Which Disney+ series sets up Wanda's turn to villainy in the film?

Elizabeth Olsen shot the two back-to-back and asked for script changes so the film would evolve Wanda rather than repeat the series.

Which sorceress sacrifices herself at Kamar-Taj to destroy the Darkhold and break Wanda's spell?

Sara, a Kamar-Taj master played by Sheila Atim, destroys the Darkhold with her dying act, briefly breaking the spell Wanda was using to possess her Earth-838 counterpart.

What does Wanda use the Darkhold to do, taking over her counterpart in another universe?

Dreamwalk is the Darkhold spell by which Wanda projects her consciousness into her counterpart's body in another universe; she uses it to hunt America in Earth-838 while her own body lies in a trance.

Which mountain is the source of the Darkhold's power?

Wanda finally brings it down herself, destroying every copy of the Darkhold across the multiverse.

Which character holds the title of Sorcerer Supreme on Earth-616 in this film?

Wong became Sorcerer Supreme by default while Strange was among the blipped for five years, and he holds the title throughout the film, leading Kamar-Taj's defence against Wanda's assault.

Which Illuminati member executed Earth-838's version of Doctor Strange?

Black Bolt executed Earth-838's Strange with a single whisper, as Mordo recounts to their prisoner; Wanda later seals Black Bolt's mouth so that his own voice destroys his skull.

Which actor plays Reed Richards in the Illuminati scene?

John Krasinski plays Reed Richards, the Fantastic Four leader whom Wanda shreds into ribbons; Krasinski's fan-casting as Reed had circulated for years before the cameo.

Which character did Daniel Craig reportedly turn down over COVID risk to his family?

Balder the Brave, Thor's Asgardian ally in the comics, was the role Daniel Craig reportedly turned down during the pandemic; the Illuminati seat went to a different character instead.

Which actor's Charles Xavier appears, combining his Fox X-Men films with the 1990s animated series?

Patrick Stewart returns as Charles Xavier, appearing in the yellow hoverchair of the 1990s X-Men cartoon; Wanda kills him by snapping his neck during a psychic intrusion.

Which Illuminati member had Hayley Atwell previously voiced in What If...?

Captain Carter is the super-soldier Peggy Carter of What If...?, voiced by Hayley Atwell in the animated series before she played the live-action Earth-838 version, whom Wanda bisects with her own shield.

Lashana Lynch's Illuminati member is an alternate version of which character?

Maria Rambeau as Captain Marvel is the Earth-838 twist on the pilot Lashana Lynch played in Captain Marvel, where her friend Carol Danvers got the powers instead; here Wanda crushes her under a falling statue.

Anson Mount reprises Black Bolt from which short-lived Marvel TV series?

Inhumans, the eight-episode ABC series of 2017, first cast Anson Mount as Black Bolt, the Inhuman king whose whisper can level cities; Mount reprises the role on Earth-838.

Which film did Waldron watch as inspiration for introducing the Illuminati only to have Wanda kill them?

Aliens was Waldron's model: James Cameron's 1986 film builds up its swaggering Colonial Marines only to have the xenomorphs tear through them, which is how he wanted Wanda's slaughter of the Illuminati to land.

Which comics Illuminati member did Waldron omit because Coogler had reserved him for Wakanda Forever?

Namor was left off the film's Illuminati because Ryan Coogler had reserved the character for Wakanda Forever, where Tenoch Huerta played him in November 2022.

The one-eyed tentacled monster resembling Shuma-Gorath is called what, for rights reasons?

Gargantos is the name used because Shuma-Gorath, the comics creature it resembles, was first named in a Robert E. Howard story and the rights belong to Howard's estate rather than Marvel.

What physical change does Strange develop at the end of the film as a consequence of using the Darkhold?

Strange opens a third eye in the film's final shot, the same mark borne by the Darkhold-corrupted variant he defeated, a sign that his own use of the Darkhold has exacted its price.

Which character does Charlize Theron introduce in the mid-credits scene?

Clea, played by Charlize Theron, appears in the mid-credits scene to summon Strange into the Dark Dimension; in the comics she is the niece of Dormammu and Strange's wife.

Sam Raimi's frequent collaborator Bruce Campbell cameos as the vendor of what?

Bruce Campbell runs a Pizza Poppa food stall on Earth-838, and his own hand attacks him after Strange bewitches it; he returns in the post-credits scene, slapping himself until the spell finally ends.

Which surgeon and former Strange colleague does Michael Stuhlbarg reprise?

Nicodemus West, the rival surgeon from the 2016 film, is reprised by Michael Stuhlbarg; at the wedding he tells Strange he lost his brother in the Blip and asks whether there was another way.

What was the film's working title?

Stellar Vortex was the production's working title; filming under that name began in England in November 2020, about six months later than the original May 2020 start date.

Where were several New York City blocks and the Sanctum Sanctorum sets built?

Longcross Studios in Surrey hosted most of the shoot, where production designer Charles Wood built several New York City blocks and the Sanctum Sanctorum; filming wrapped in Somerset in April 2021.

Which composer, a longtime Raimi collaborator, replaced Michael Giacchino when Raimi took over?

Danny Elfman, the director's longtime composer, replaced Michael Giacchino and wove Giacchino's 2016 Strange theme into his own score, as he had used Alan Silvestri's Avengers theme on Age of Ultron.

Which book do Strange and America seek as the benevolent counterpart to the Darkhold?

The Book of Vishanti gives a sorcerer whatever spell they need; Strange and America reach it in the Gap Junction between universes, only for Wanda to destroy it before they can use it.

The Illuminati execute their universe's Strange after he caused what by misusing the Darkhold?

Earth-838's Strange caused an incursion, a collision of two universes, while using the Darkhold to find a way to beat Thanos; in the mid-credits scene a sorceress tells the main universe's Strange that he has now caused one too.

Approximately how much did the film gross worldwide?

$956M is the film's approximate worldwide gross ($955.8 million), the fourth-highest of any 2022 release and far above the 2016 original's $677 million.

Its $187.4 million domestic opening beat which film's $151 million as Sam Raimi's biggest opening?

Spider-Man 3 opened to $151.1 million in May 2007, the director's previous best; Multiverse of Madness beat it with $187.4 million over its first weekend in May 2022.

Why was the film not released in Saudi Arabia?

The film was pulled in Saudi Arabia because Disney refused to cut Chavez's 'two moms' line, a roughly 12-second reference to America's two mothers that the kingdom's censors had asked to have removed.

What object spotted in the trailer reportedly made a Chinese release unlikely?

Viewers spotted a newspaper box for The Epoch Times, a paper founded by Falun Gong practitioners and fiercely critical of the Chinese Communist Party, in a New York street scene of the trailer; the film never got a Chinese release.

Which film's move to November 2021 pushed Multiverse of Madness back and forced Waldron to rewrite it as a follow-up?

Spider-Man: No Way Home took the November 2021 slot in April 2020, bumping Multiverse of Madness into 2022 and turning it into a follow-up, so Waldron had to rework a script that had originally introduced Strange to the multiverse.

The main-on-end title sequence uses what kind of imagery?

Perception's main-on-end sequence is built from Colourful Rorschach tests, symmetrical inkblots that suggest the film's characters and their mirrored selves across universes.

Multiverse of Madness is which numbered MCU film?

Multiverse of Madness is the 28th MCU film; it opened in May 2022, two months before Thor: Love and Thunder, the 29th.

What CinemaScore grade did audiences give the film?

Deadline blamed the grade and word of mouth for a 67% second-weekend drop, one of the MCU's steepest.

Where was the teaser trailer first shown, before going online on December 22, 2021?

The teaser debuted after the credits of Spider-Man: No Way Home in December 2021, serving as that film's post-credits scene, then went online on December 22; a full trailer followed during Super Bowl LVI in February 2022.

America Chavez comes from which home universe?

The Utopian Parallel is America's home universe in the comics and the film, a paradise outside time where her two mothers raised her; she was torn from it as a child when her powers first opened a portal.

Earth-838's version of Christine Palmer works for which organisation?

The Baxter Foundation, a research body named for the Fantastic Four's Baxter Building, employs Earth-838's Christine as a multiverse researcher; she helps Strange and America cross into the space between universes.

Which minotaur-like Kamar-Taj student from R'Vaal is voiced by Adam Hugill?

Rintrah, the green minotaur-like student from the planet R'Vaal, is voiced by Adam Hugill; in the comics Rintrah served as Strange's apprentice and once lent the injured sorcerer his body.

Who voices the Ultron drones seen on Earth-838?

Ross Marquand voices the Ultron sentries guarding the Illuminati, having already voiced the Infinity Ultron of What If...?; Marquand also played Red Skull in Infinity War and Endgame after Hugo Weaving declined to return.

Which 'up-and-coming screenwriter' was hired in October 2019 to write the sequel?

Jade Halley Bartlett, described in reports as an up-and-coming screenwriter, was hired in October 2019; her draft was set aside after the original director left and a new writer came aboard in February 2020.

Which comic-book villain did the original director say he wanted to feature in a sequel?

Nightmare, ruler of the Dream Dimension in the comics, was the villain the original director said he wanted for a sequel; he never appeared, and Wanda became the antagonist instead.

At which July 2019 event was the film's title officially announced?

San Diego Comic-Con's Hall H panel in July 2019 unveiled the title Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, with Kevin Feige adding that Wanda's Disney+ series would lead directly into it and Elizabeth Olsen would co-star.

What release date was confirmed when the title was first announced in 2019?

May 7, 2021 was the date announced alongside the title in July 2019; the pandemic pushed the film back three times, and it finally opened on May 6, 2022, a day short of a year late.

The screenwriter drew on which animated series to make big sci-fi ideas 'digestible'?

Rick and Morty, the Adult Swim series Waldron wrote for before creating Loki, was his training ground for introducing sprawling multiverse ideas without drowning the audience in exposition.

Which head writer of Wanda's Disney+ series was consulted to continue her story?

Jac Schaeffer, head writer of Wanda's Disney+ series, was consulted by Waldron so Wanda's arc would pick up where the show left off; Schaeffer later created the 2024 spin-off about Agatha Harkness.

Which 2013 film was the director's most recent feature before this one?

He said he was curious how making big-budget films had changed in the nine years since, and had to catch up on the MCU's storylines.

After Sony took the November 2021 slot in April 2020, the film was moved to which date?

March 25, 2022 became the film's date in April 2020 after Sony's web-slinger sequel claimed November 5, 2021; it held until October 2021, when Disney shifted the film one final time to May 6, 2022.

Who was the film's cinematographer?

John Mathieson, the cinematographer of Ridley Scott's Gladiator and Kingdom of Heaven, shot the film, his first Marvel Studios project.

Who co-edited the film alongside Tia Nolan?

Bob Murawski, the director's regular editor since Army of Darkness, cut the film with Tia Nolan; Murawski shared the Best Film Editing Oscar for The Hurt Locker with Chris Innis.

The six-week reshoots in late 2021 took place in which city?

Los Angeles hosted six weeks of additional photography in November and December 2021, which added material to the Illuminati sequence, months after principal photography had wrapped in England in April 2021.

Which cosmic entity makes a brief appearance in the film?

The Living Tribunal, the three-faced cosmic judge who weighs the fate of entire universes in the comics, flashes past during Strange and America's fall through the multiverse.

The Illuminati's Xavier repeats a line of dialogue from which X-Men film?

X-Men: Days of Future Past supplied the line that someone who stumbles and loses their way is not lost forever, which Xavier said to his younger self in 2014 and repeats about Wanda here.

Tom Cruise was rumoured to play which alternate version of Tony Stark?

Superior Iron Man, the arrogant alternate Tony Stark from the 2014 comics, was the role internet rumours handed to Tom Cruise before release; the finished film contains no Stark variant at all.

Which Fox character did the writer discuss including before deciding it was not 'the right place'?

Deadpool was discussed for a cameo, Waldron said, before the team decided the film was not the right place for him; Ryan Reynolds's merc finally entered the MCU in Deadpool & Wolverine in July 2024.

Who was the film's costume designer?

Graham Churchyard designed the film's costumes, including distinct looks for each of the Strange variants and Wanda's full Scarlet Witch garb.

The composer first worked with the director on which 1990 film?

The pair went on to make A Simple Plan and two Spider-Man films together before this one.

For legal reasons, the X-Men cartoon theme is credited to Shuki Levy and which other executive?

The theme's actual composer, Ron Wasserman, goes uncredited on the film.

A 2022 commercial featuring the Cloak of Levitation promoted which laundry detergent?

Tide, Procter & Gamble's detergent, ran a 2022 tie-in commercial in which the Cloak of Levitation gets a wash; the ad appeared in April, a month before the film opened.

Which gaming brand made custom co-branded console kits and controllers for the film?

Xbox ran a sweepstakes giving away a custom console and controllers themed on the film, one of several promotional partners lined up for the May 2022 release.

A watch from which luxury maker features in the film?

Jaeger-LeCoultre made the Master Ultra Thin Perpetual that Strange wears; the cracked watch, a gift inscribed 'Time will tell how much I love you', was already a key prop in the 2016 film.

Eight VTubers from which agency promoted the film in a pre-premiere stream?

Hololive, the Japanese VTuber agency run by Cover Corp, had eight of its English-language talents host a YouTube promotional stream for the film on May 3, 2022, the eve of its first international openings.

Where did the film hold its world premiere on May 2, 2022?

The Dolby Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard, home of the Academy Awards ceremony since 2002, hosted the world premiere on May 2, 2022, four days before the US opening.

On what date did the film begin streaming on Disney+?

June 22, 2022 was the Disney+ premiere, 47 days after the US theatrical opening, with subscribers offered both the standard version and an IMAX Enhanced presentation in the taller 1.90:1 aspect ratio.

Which film first overtook it as 2022's highest domestic grosser after it passed The Batman?

Top Gun: Maverick overtook it in the summer of 2022 and ended the year as the top domestic release with more than $700 million; Multiverse of Madness finished with $411.3 million in the US and Canada.

Which Strange variant duels the hero with weaponised musical notes?

Sinister Strange, the Darkhold-corrupted variant living alone in a ruined Sanctum, fights Strange by hurling notes pulled from sheet music at him, a duel that ends when Strange flings him out of a window to his death.

Elizabeth Olsen won which prize at the 2023 MTV Movie & TV Awards?

Best Villain at the 2023 MTV Movie & TV Awards went to Elizabeth Olsen for her Scarlet Witch, a rare case of an MCU hero's actor being honoured for turning antagonist.

The score's Grammy nomination for Best Arrangement was for which cue?

'Main Titles' from the score earned the film's composer a nomination for Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella at the 65th Grammy Awards in February 2023.

The film's making-of special belongs to which Disney+ documentary series?

Marvel Studios: Assembled, the Disney+ behind-the-scenes series, released 'The Making of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness' on July 8, 2022, about two weeks after the film itself reached the service.

Who play Earth-838's Billy and Tommy, reprising their roles from Wanda's Disney+ series?

Julian Hilliard and Jett Klyne return as Billy and Tommy, the twin sons Wanda conjured in her Disney+ series, here as real children living with her Earth-838 counterpart, who recoil in fear when the real Wanda finally reaches them.

The screenwriter's cameo casts him as a guest at whose wedding?

Christine Palmer's wedding, where she marries a man named Charlie, opens Strange's story in his own universe and confronts him with the choice he made at the end of the first film; Waldron sits among the guests.