Spider-Man: No Way Home pulled off a seemingly impossible feat by bringing together the Spider-Man actors from three different franchises. This means nothing is off the table when it comes to Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, which is expected to have even more big cameos and plot twists. Marvel has been holding its cards close to its chest when it comes to Doctor Strange 2’s story, but even some of the wilder fan theories may end up coming true when the movie hits screens later this week.
Let’s take a look at some Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness plot theories, shall we?
(We’ll add a spoiler alert here for Doctor Strange 2 in the event any of these theories end up being correct.)
Doctor Strange 2 plot theories that we want to see happen
Would the real Doctor Strange please stand up?
We’ve seen the impact of what multiverse versions of one character can have (hello, Loki), so it’s a pretty safe bet we’ll be seeing more than one Stephen Strange in Multiverse of Madness.
Trailers have already given us a look at one such evil Doctor Strange, which appears to be the Supreme Strange from the animated Disney+ series What If…?.
Another TV spot has seemingly shown a different multiversal version of Doctor Strange (with a questionable haircut) who many speculate is Defender Strange, aka the leader of the Defenders in Marvel comics.
If this is how Netflix’s Defenders characters make their way into the MCU, sign us up.
Scarlet Witch becomes the villain
From supporting a killer robot in Age of Ultron, to accidentally blowing up a building in Captain America: Civil War, to holding an entire town captive in WandaVision, Wanda Maximoff’s evolution to becoming the Scarlet Witch has seen her make plenty of mistakes.
Coming out of WandaVision, we know that Wanda is dealing with the aftermath of these mistakes, but is also tempted by the chaos magic of the Darkhold, presumably to track down her lost sons Billy and Tommy (who also appear in trailers for Doctor Strange 2).
Wanda is no stranger to extreme measures and it seems plausible that she could be pushed one step too far into villain territory, especially if it comes down to the fate of her children.
In one of the trailers, we even hear Wanda say to Strange “you break the rules, and you become a hero. I do it, and I become the enemy. That doesn’t seem fair.”
Dotor Strange joins The Illuminati
Marvel fans freaked out when they saw Doctor Strange escorted by robots to stand trial before a chamber full of mysterious figures. In a later trailer, it was confirmed that this does indeed seem to be the Illuminati.
The Illuminati in Marvel comics is a secret group of superheroes who work together to help determine the fate of the universe. In the comics, the group has included the likes of Namor, Iron Man, Reed Richards, Black Bolt, Professor X and our very own Stephen Strange. Could we see Doctor Strange take up his seat on the panel by the end of the movie?
It’s unclear who will make up the rest of the Illuminati lineup in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, but we did hear Patrick Stewart’s voice emanate from the shadows so it seems like he will be returning to his famous role as Charles Xavier.
The X-Men enter the MCU
Speaking of the X-Men, many theories speculate that Doctor Strange 2 will open the door for mutants to enter the MCU.
Stewart’s Professor X already seems fairly likely, which brings the concept of mutants into the MCU for the first time. But does his appearance mean other X-Men from the Fox universe of films will crossover to the MCU as well?
Kevin Feige announced years ago that Marvel has plans to bring in the Mutants, so now it’s just a waiting game to see when and how they show up.
Who is Alternate Universe Captain Marvel?
Doctor Strange isn’t the only one we’ll be seeing different versions of in Multiverse of Madness. Trailers for the new Marvel film have shown off snippets of Captain Marvel, but it doesn’t seem to be Brie Larson under that mask.
Instead, this variant of Captain Marvel looks a hell of a lot like Lashana Lynch’s Maria Rambeau, who it seems may have become the iconic superhero in another universe. How this Captain Marvel variant will play into the action of Doctor Strange 2 is another question, but she’ll undoubtedly be quite a force to be reckoned with.
Captain Carter in live-action
Speaking of Captain variants, What If…? introduced us to a universe in which Peggy Carter took the super-soldier serum instead of Steve Rogers and became a British version of the all-American hero named Captain Carter.
A live-action version of Captain Carter seems more and more likely seeing as the character’s iconic shield has been spotted in trailers and posters for Multiverse of Madness. If true this would also likely bring Hayley Atwell back into the MCU.
Tobey Maguire Spider-Man connections
The precedent has been set for Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Men to appear in the MCU. So it doesn’t seem too extreme to think we might see them again in Multiverse of Madness.
This theory gains even more credence when you realise that Sam Raimi, who directed Tobey Maguire’s trilogy of Spider-Man films, is also directing Doctor Strange 2. Therefore, it doesn’t seem like too much of a stretch to think that the director would want to tie his two Marvel films together somehow.
While it would be great to see Maguire return for another cameo in the Spidey suit, it may not end up being as explicit as that. Instead, Raimi may just throw in a few Easter eggs or references to his Spider-Man universe for fans to spot.
Kang the Conquerer Doctor Strange 2 theory
Loki’s first season introduced us to He Who Remains, the ruler of the TVA and keeper of the sacred timeline. That all went to hell, however, when Sylvie killed him and unleashed his terrifying variants upon the multiverse.
One of these variants is Kang the Conquerer. Jonathan Majors has been confirmed to return as Kang in Ant-Man 3, but with Kang being such a prevalent villain, particularly in the multiverse, it’s very possible we’ll see him in this movie, too.
Loki and Doctor Strange 2 writer Michael Waldron did say the two Marvel projects would connect. Could Kang be that connection? He’d certainly make for a powerful villain for Doctor Strange and Wanda to face. Maybe powerful enough that the Illuminati have to get involved?
If nothing else, a post-credits sting featuring Kang seems a likely option.
Midnight Sons tease
The theories are getting pretty extravagant at this point, but it’s hard to deny it would be incredibly cool to see some of these things play out on screen.
In particular, a Midnight Sons team-up is getting more and more probable, and is something that could definitely be teased in Doctor Strange 2.
In Marvel comics, the Midnight Sons act as a kind of supernatural team of Avengers that was secretly formed by Doctor Strange. Characters like Blade, Moon Knight, Morbius and Ghost Rider were all part of the team at some time or another, and you may have noticed that a few of those names are also on the MCU’s current roster.
It seems like it’s only a matter of time until someone brings the team together and we could get a hint of that happening in Doctor Strange 2.
The Young Avengers tease in Doctor Strange 2
Another team that Marvel seems to be steadily building on-screen is the Young Avengers. In the comics, the team has consisted of characters like Kate Bishop, Cassie Lang, Kid Loki, Patriot, Wiccan, Speed and America Chavez. And would you look at that? Many of these characters have also been set up in the current phase of the MCU. What a coincidence!
Wiccan and Speed are the superhero monikers that Wanda’s children Billy and Tommy go on to become and, as mentioned, they seem to be returning in Doctor Strange 2.
Also appearing for the first time in Multiverse of Madness is America Chavez (Xochitl Gomez) who uses her reality busting powers to take on the role of Miss America.
Even if we don’t see a Young Avengers tease in Doctor Strange 2 specifically, we’re becoming more and more confident that we’ll see all these characters come together at some point in the MCU.
Marvel Zombies
We’ve seen the Marvel zombies storyline play out in What If…? and, as we’ve mentioned, it seems like quite a few What If…? storylines are coming to life in Doctor Strange 2, so why couldn’t zombies be one of them?
Some shots in the trailers have shown our Marvel heroes looking a little worse for wear, but could this tease them going into full zombie mode? Wild if true.
Tom Cruise’s Iron Man theory
This is possibly the wildest Doctor Strange 2 theory that’s floating around, but it’s possible we could see Tom Cruise in the MCU.
Back in the early days of the Marvel universe, Tom Cruise was considered a top pick to play Iron Man. The role ultimately went to Robert Downey Jr. but fans are now speculating that Cruise could get his turn at Iron Man as a variant of Tony Stark in Multiverse of Madness.
It was originally thought that the Captain Marvel variant seen in the Doctor Strange 2 trailer could instead be Tom Cruise as Superior Iron Man, but higher resolution screenshots have seemingly debunked that theory.
Still, it doesn’t mean that Tom Cruise can’t appear as a version of Tony Stark on the chair of the Illuminati. I think the entire theatre will implode if that happens.
One thing is for sure, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is going to blow our minds in one way or another when it hits screens on May 5. If you want to catch up on all action, here are the Marvel films and series we recommend you watch before the new movie.
Do you have a favourite Doctor Strange theory that you want to see come to fruition? Let us know in the comments.
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