Who is the villain in Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness? It’s been one of the biggest questions hanging over the Doctor Strange Sequel ever since it was announced, with no clear answer. Now, even as we get a new Doctor Strange 2 trailer counting down the last month until release, we still have no clear concept of who the main antagonist of the film is. We’ve heard villain names like Mephisto, Nightmare, Mordo, and Shuma-Gorath dropped – we’ve also had concepts of heroes facing their own evil selves floated.
In a new Fandango interview for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, director Sam Raimi was asked directly if there is a new character serving as an antagonist; if it is Mordo (Chiwetel Ejiofor) behind the madness; or if Strange and/or Scarlet Witch variants are the culprits:
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“Well, there’s iterations of our characters throughout the multiverse,” Raimi explains. “So, if I were to say Strange … I’m not really supposed to answer this question, but I might be saying altered Strange. Same with Wanda and Mordo. But I would say, at different times, all of the above.”
And with that answer, we are somehow no closer to actually figuring out who the “villain” of Doctor Strange 2 actually is. While Raimi’s answer is vague, we still have scenes of Mordo and Scarlet Witch raising hell in trailer footage; a creature that’s clearly a Shuma-Gorath reference fighting Strange and America Chavez (Xochitl Gomez); and now Wanda dropping the word “Nightmare” in reference to dreams she and Strange are having that could signal the villain’s arrival.
That all said, what Raimi and co. have said throughout this process may turn out to be remarkably straightforward: In a movie that takes us through infinite versions of reality, it could very well be the case that any and everyone turns out to have a version of themselves that can be supremely evil and twisted. Like, that might very well be a major part of the thematic arc of the film.
Of course, while playing with the idea of a “hero” and “villain” merely being labels that are dependent on context and point of view is intriguing, it could throw some Marvel moviegoers who love the simple “good vs. evil” structure. More importantly, where that expanded perspective leaves Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) and Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) will be supremely interesting for the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness hits theaters on May 6th.
