The Marvel Cinematic Universe consistently puts out new content, both in theaters and streaming with a Disney+ subscription. There are countless questions about upcoming Marvel movies, including Benedict Cumberbatch‘s Doctor Strange franchise. The Multiverse of Madness‘ ending set up some huge things for the former Sorcerer Supreme, and a new report made a bold claim about what’s going on with the threequel. Let’s break it all down.
Folks who have been watching the Marvel movies in order know that it’s already been years since Sam Raimi’s Doctor Strange 2 hit theaters in 2022. We last saw Strange alongside Charlize Theron‘s Clea jumping into the multiverse to stop an incursion, but he hasn’t shown up since. Scooper Cosmic Circus recently made a bold claim about Marvel’s current plans for the magical franchise, saying:
It’s on the backburner. Marvel’s movie focus right now is on Black Panther 3, Shang-Chi 2, Spider-Man 5, the X-Men, Thunderbolts* sequel, Blade, Midnight Sons, and the next Avengers title.
Well, this stinks. While there are plenty of Marvel movies for the studio to focus on, the fact that we’re seemingly not getting any follow-up to the wild mid-credits sene of Doctor Strange 2 is a real bummer. We’ll just have to see if Cumberbatch’s hero ends up appearing in any other MCU blockbusters, and hopefully revealing what happened after he and Clea disappeared into the multiverse.
Doctor Strange suddenly having a third eye threw fans for a loop, as did Charlize Theron’s surprise cameo in the final moments of The Multiverse of Madness. Some folks were thrilled about the Oscar-winning actress joining the shared universe, but the scene is just one of many credits sequences that haven’t been followed up from the post-Endgame era of the MCU. Others include Eternals, She-Hulk, Thor: Love and Thunder, and The Marvels. And is the above report is to be believed, we’re not getting another Strange movie anytime soon.
If Doctor Strange 3 isn’t happening, then I’m really going to need to see that magical hero in one of the next two Avengers movies. Benedict Cumberbatch indicated that he was in Secret Wars, but there’s been doubt as to whether or not he’ll appear in that title or Doomsday. He wasn’t part of the official Avengers: Doomsday cast announcement, but fans like me are hoping to see him appear. Especially if we aren’t getting a threequel.
Avengers: Doomsday will hit theaters on December 18th as part of the 2026 movie release list. Fingers crossed we get to see Stephen Strange on the big screen sooner rather than later… hopefully with some answers about what happened him after his sequel’s mid-credits scene.