In early November, Benedict Cumberbatch will bring Doctor Stephen Vincent Strange to life on the big screen. This will be many fans first experience with the character, as he is not one of the more famous Marvel comic book personas. In short, he is an arrogant surgeon who is in a nasty car accident which renders his hands virtually useless. He then seeks help in the form of magic out in the mountains to help regain a purpose in life.
To date, we have only seen one trailer for the "Doctor Strange" film, and that trailer pretty much confirmed they are sticking to that main character origin. But besides that, not much is known about the film. Below are some of the thousands of questions that someone could ask about the film.
Is it simply an origin story?
Given we have never met the character, and the way the first trailer is depicted, it is safe to say we are definitely getting the origin story part in the film. But is that going to be the whole film? A coming of age and realizing of who Stephen Strange is as a hero. Or will there be more to the story, with the origin being relegated to a handful of scenes or in flashbacks?
Marvel has said in the past they were going away from origin stories, which were extremely popular years back. The game has since changed, with Black Panther and Spider-Man being introduced within a Captain America film earlier this year without any true origin stories. Granted we have seen two Spidey origin stories before, but this is a new Spider-Man.
As for Doctor Strange, I am expecting the origin to be handled in the form of flashbacks. Given the potential of the time stone (more on that shortly), time itself will likely be a key element in the film. Therefore handling the origin as flashbacks would just add another time layer onto the film.
Is that an infinity stone in his costume?
There are two infinity stones yet to be revealed, and we are running out of films to reveal them. Given the mystical nature of this film, the presence of an infinity stone is a very good bet. The real question is, where will it be and how will it play into the storyline? That green thing at the center of Strange's costume sure looks like it could be a stone.
Could this mean the source of his powers is from a stone and not truly magic? Does he have magical powers that are just exemplified by the stone? For all I know his costume does not contain the stone and it is actually something he fights over with the villain, ala "Guardians of the Galaxy."
What role will Baron Mordo play?
Baron Mordo has been both an ally and foe to Strange in the comics from what I have read, but predominantly a villain. In the film it appears both are learning together from the Ancient One, which lends credence to the ally theory for this film. But will he turn on our hero at some point in the film? Will he be actively fighting the good fight with Strange or just in the scenes with the Ancient One?
My best guess says he stands by Doctor Strange's side for most of the film. It will be at the end of the movie when he turns on Strange and heads down the path of evil. This could help set up the future of this film's franchise. I expect his motives to be different, and this will lead him to heading down this path, but while helping in the fight against evil for most of the film.
Which villain is Mads Mikkelsen playing?
Simply put, we have no idea who the villain of the film will be. We know Mr. Mikkelsen is playing the big baddie, but we have no idea who he will be. The trailer had him bending reality like it was his job, and he had himself some henchmen looking guys. But besides from that, we have very little to work off of.
Will we get any cameos?
"Ant Man" was Marvel's last film that centered around a new character, and it featured a guest appearance from Falcon. So that begs the question, will we see any familiar faces in this one? And if so, who?
It could be very easy to tie in a cameo here after the events of "Civil War." Secretary of State Ross could pop in at the end, following Strange's last big battle that will no doubt catch the eye of many, and ask Strange to sign the Accords. We could also see a member of Team Iron Man pop in and do this as well. Possibly Vision or War Machine (which would give us an update on his status).
Or maybe a member of Team Cap comes in to recruit him before he can sign the Accords. Scarlet Witch has the mystical powers, so she would fit into the film very well for a cameo. Hawkeye or Ant Man cannot be ruled out either.
The most intriguing option in my opinion however, is Spider-Man himself. Both he and Strange live in New York, and actor Tom Holland did pay a visit to the set while they were filming. So maybe Peter Parker runs into Strange on the streets of New York. It could make for a comical scene that also helps remind the audience this film is in the same universe as the Avengers.
How trippy can the film get?
The trailer had a lot of mind bending action going on. Strange will be able to to leave his body. New York will turn into multiple forms in a very "Inception" kind of way. The introducing of magic will surely make this film one of the most visually different films from Marvel to date. They will supposedly be going to the Quantum Realm again like Ant Man did, and from what we saw in his film, things are going to get, pun fully intended here, strange. The question remains though, how strange?
How big of a role will Rachel McAdams' character play?
We do not even know who she is playing yet. All we could say is she is a nurse or doctor of some kind, given her quick appearance in the first trailer. So will she be an old work friend of Strange's? A love interest? Both?
How she ties into the story as a whole is a complete mystery. We have no idea if she will be able to help in the fight against our unnamed villain. My guess says she plays a Jane Foster like role from the first two "Thor" films, which means she will have some hand in helping take down Mikkelsen.
There are plenty of more questions we could still ask about this movie, but these are some of the core ones. Unfortunately we will have to wait until November 4 to find the answers to them. Until then it will be mostly a guessing game, with hope that new trailers will shed more light on the film and what fans should expect.
As a huge Marvel fan, I usually have a decent feel of the overall arc of the film and how it will tie in to the universe as a whole, but this one I do not. The first trailer left me scratching my head, asking more questions than I had answered, and that is a good thing. Having a film full of mystery makes it even more intriguing when sitting down in one of those big reclining seats come November.
What questions do you have on the film? Are you excited to go see it when it's released? Tell us in the comments!
