New Delhi: Marvel Entertainment has just released the official trailer for the Benedict Cumberbatch-starrer Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. The movie is a sequel to Doctor Strange (2016), and is directed by Sam Raimi, whose popular works include the Tobey Maguire-starrer Spider-Man trilogy, and The Evil Dead trilogy starring Bruce Campbell.
Raimi is a well-known director of the horror genre. The official trailer for Doctor Strange 2 uses a lot of dark themes and horror elements, and appears more terrifying than the official teaser trailer released in December last year. This could be the first horror movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).
The official trailer has broken the internet and shows a famous Marvel character entering the MCU. We break down all the easter eggs and hidden details in the trailer, and decode several theories for you.
Patrick Stewart’s Professor Xavier To Be Part Of The MCU?
The most interesting detail revealed in the trailer is the possible entry of Patrick Stewart’s Professor Xavier, also called Professor X, into the MCU. Stewart’s face is not shown, but his voice can be heard, and this is a detail only a true Marvel fan can spot. Professor X is a popular X-Men character, and Stewart could be playing an alternate version of Professor X in the movie, which deals with the alternate realities, timelines, or universes.
In the trailer, Stewart is heard saying, “We should tell him the truth.” Professor X may want to reveal an important secret to Doctor Strange, which the latter is unaware of.
Illuminati Likely To Show Up
In the trailer, we see Mordo, probably an alternate version of the character, telling Strange that his desecration of reality will not go unpunished. This alternate version, who will likely be called Master Mordo, is seen handcuffing Strange. After this, Strange is escorted to a place appearing like a court by some Ultron Bots.
Strange is most likely to appear before the Illuminati, a secret organization composed of several of the world’s most powerful heroes. Strange may have to answer for his actions in Spider-Man: No Way Homein which the Master of the Mystic Arts cast a spell that opened the doors to the multiverse.
In the Marvel comics, the Illuminati consisted of six members. These were: Tony Stark, Doctor Strange, Charles Xavier, Reed Richards, Black Bolt, and Namor. Interestingly, six chairs can be spotted in the Illuminati panel in the trailer.
In Iron Man 2 (2010), we saw an app in Tony Stark’s phone which had Illuminati written on it, suggesting that the MCU version of Stark may have secretly been a part of the organisation.
The court gives the vibes of the Citadel of Time shown in Loki, and could be similar to the Time Variance Authority (TVA), which “pruned” branching realities.
Who Could Be The Members Of The Illuminati?
Now, characters who are likely to be a part of the Illuminati in Doctor Strange 2 include Professor X, Master Mordo, Reed Richards, and Captain Carter. Also, John Krasinski is speculated to have a cameo in the movie as Reed Richards. In the movie’s official poster, we can see the shield of Captain Carter, a character appearing in the Disney+ animated series What If, and we may see Hayley Atwell playing the live action version of the character.
Other possible members include Superior Iron Man, rumoured to be played by Tom Cruise, and Monica Rambeau, who could be playing an alternate version of Captain Marvel in a different reality.
The reality in which the Illuminati exists could be the one in which Iron Man succeeded in creating a version of Ultron which did not turn evil. This Iron Man variant ended up becoming Superior Iron Man in the comics.
Scarlet Witch Likely To Be The Main Villain
Doctor Strange had cast a spell in No Way Home to make everyone forget that Peter Parker is Spider-Man. However, Parker botched the spell, which caused the multiverse to break open, and introduced several inter-dimensional beings into the MCU. Strange cast another spell at the end of the movie, which wiped out the memories of Peter Parker from everyone’s minds.
Strange did make the characters from the multiverse return to their original timelines, but his actions may have had a lingering effect on the sacred timeline, or the original MCU timeline.
He goes to Wanda Maximoff in order to understand the multiverse. Maximoff, who became the Scarlet Witch at the end of the Disney+ series WandaVision, is seen in an orchard of white flowers. However, this could be an illusion created by Wanda.
This is because in a subsequent scene in the trailer, Wanda is seen in a villainous form, accusing Strange of breaking the rules, and he is wearing the same clothes as the ones he was wearing when he went to visit Wanda.
In a sinister tone, Scarlet Witch tells Strange: “You break the rules…and become the hero. I do it and I become the enemy. That doesn’t seem fair.” These lines are indicative of the fact that Wanda is highly likely to be the main antagonist in the movie. Wanda had indeed broken the rules by warping reality in WandaVision.
In the teaser trailer, Wong was held captive, and red bands appeared near his hands. Wanda may have conjured chaos magic, the color code of which is red.
Alternate Version Of Westview
In the official trailer, we see various versions of Wanda. In one of the most interesting scenes, we see an alternate version of Westview, a town in which Wanda created an alternate reality to live a happy life with Vision and her two sons, Tommy and Billy Maximoff. However, Wanda had to disintegrate the hex at the end of WandaVision, which caused Vision, Tommy, and Billy to disintegrate as well, because Vision had already died in Infinity War, and Wanda’s sons never existed in reality. At the end of the series, Wanda was seen studying the Dark Hold, the forbidden book on Dark Magic, and was searching through the multiverse to look for her kids.
In the trailer for Doctor Strange 2, Scarlet Witch from the MCU is kneeling down before Wanda from the alternate version of Westview, who is probably leading a happy life with her husband and kids. The MCU version of Wanda may have tried to steal the kids of her alternate self, but was defeated.
Similarities To House Of M
In the House of M, a 2005 comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics, Wanda had warped reality, and the Avengers and the X-Men were planning to kill her, as she was a big threat to the universe. Professor X and Strange did not allow Wanda to have a reality with her children. The storyline ended with Wanda saying, “No more mutants”.
The opposite of this may be happening in the movie, and Wanda may do something which will cause other beings like her to be a part of the MCU timeline.
We see Wanda fighting a figure emitting golden light, who is most probably Monica Rambeau’s Captain Marvel from another universe. The character could also be Maria Rambeau or Iron Man Supreme.
Strange’s Dreams & Different Versions
The trailer opens with Doctor Strange saying that every night, he dreams the same dream, and then, the nightmare begins. We see glimpses of a dilapidated version of the Sanctum Sanctorum, which was also shown in the teaser. The ground near the Sanctorum is covered in bones, and skulls, and the building has an unusually long staircase, which is probably a “Stairway To Hell”.
Strange goes to meet Evil Strange or Strange Supreme, a variant who, in his efforts to bring his love interest, Christine Palmer, back from the dead, causes his entire reality to dissipate.
We also see America Chavez, one of the important characters in the movie, being attacked by a demonic creature with ribbon-like features. She is saved by Defender Strange, another variant of Doctor Strange. Defender Strange has a different appearance, and dons a ponytail and different costume.
Some star-shaped portals appear behind Chavez and Defender Strange, and after this scene, the version of Strange seeing the dreams wakes up in his bedroom. The different variants of Strange were probably trying to connect with Strange from the original timeline. It is also possible that Wanda is making Strange see these visions, similar to what she did to the Avengers in Age Of Ultron.
He says that the nightmare begins, which means that the reality he is living in is worse than what he sees in his dreams. In full the trailer, we see that the reality in the sacred timeline is dissipating, similar to what was shown in What If Episode 4. Black strands are seen when New York is disintegrating, and these could represent dark entities brought into the MCU by Wanda.
Strange tells Wong, “I did what I did in order to save our reality,” and could be referring to his actions in Infinity War, Endgame, and No Way Home.
Wanda and Strange Supreme have a lot of similarities because both had lost their loved ones, and were ready to go to any extent to bring them back.
Strange & America Chavez Fall Through Different Realities
The power of America Chavez is that she can open star portals to different dimensions. She has traveled to the MCU from another reality, and Strange will probably seek her help. She wears a jacket with a Star symbol at the back.
She will help Strange travel through the multiverse, and takes him to a place that appears to be the Utopian Parallel, Chavez’s home. It acts as a gateway to other universes, and exists out of time, parallel to all other dimensions of the multiverse.
Strange and Chavez are falling through different realities, one of which appears to be a version of prehistoric Earth with dinosaurs.
In another reality, Strange and Chavez’s forms change into blocks, which is similar to what Thanos did to Drax in Infinity War. Also, this has a striking similarity to the famous cover of House Of M, which shows Wanda’s face disintegrating into cubes.
Gargantos, an enemy of Namor, is a giant creature with tentacles which attacks Strange and Chavez by throwing a bus at them, but Strange saves the both of them.
In the Utopian Parallel, Chavez and Christine Palmer are seen behind Strange. This Christine may be from another reality, and the same as the one seen in the TV spot for the movie released on the same day as the trailer.
Christine is working for the Illuminati, and is seen wearing a white coat at the Headquarters for the secret organisation. Behind her, we see America Chavez held captive in a transparent prison.
Wanda Attacks Kamartaj & Illuminati Headquarters
In one of the scenes, dark clouds surround Kamartaj, which could be a result of Wanda attacking the place. She also performs a seance at Kamartaj in her Scarlet Witch form.
We see Doctor Strange conjuring Chaos Magic, as several red-coloured orbs are shown. These orbs may be representing different universes. The orbs appear to originate from the Dark Hold, and Strange is directing them back into the forbidden book.
It seems that Wanda appears at the Illuminati headquarters and launches a powerful attack. This version of Wanda is covered in blood, and may have badly wounded someone. In a close view of one of her eyes, we see glass cages similar to the one in which Chavez is held captive. Wanda may have come to take Chavez with her, because the latter possesses the power to traverse through the multiverse.
Zombie Variants
In the TV spot, the zombie versions of Doctor Strange and Wanda can be clearly seen. Towards the end of the trailer, the zombie variant of Doctor Strange is seen on a mountain, and is surrounded by dark entities or demonic creatures.
The zombie variant appears similar to the one shown in What If, and could be Defender Strange turning into a zombie. Wong is also there with the zombie, and the dark spirits are similar to the black strands the reality was dissipating into.
Wanda may have brought the dark spirits into the MCU. The trailer ends with a shot of Zombie Strange with the evil spirits behind him, similar to a famous scene of Doctor Strange fighting Thanos in Infinity War.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is slated to release in theaters worldwide May 6.
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