'Doctor Strange' Featurette Reveals First Concept Art, Promises "Mind-Trip Action Film"
We've spent the past couple of weeks gorging ourselves on new footage, photos, and details from Captain America: Civil War, due out next summer. But Marvel's other big theatrical release of 2016, Doctor Strange, remains shrouded in mystery. Not only is the character brand-new to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, he represents a more mystical side of the MCU that hasn't been explored too deeply in the films so far.
Shooting on Doctor Strange has only just begun, so it'll likely be a long while before we get a real trailer. But to tide us over in the meantime, director Scott Derrickson and producer Kevin Feige have dropped a few hints about what we have to look forward to — including a first peek at some Doctor Strange concept art. Check it out after the jump.
The Doctor Strange details were teased in a featurette included as part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe: Phase 2 collection. The box set will be available exclusively on Amazon starting Tuesday, December 8 — just in time for you to check your favorite Marvel nerd off your holiday gift list.
[via USA Today]
Not surprisingly, the Doctor Strange featurette is pretty vague. There are no specific plot points or character details revealed, or anything like that. But the talking heads do try to explain the overall vibe of the late 2016 release. "What you can expect from this Doctor Strange movie is a mind-trip action film," says Derrickson. Oh, and there's also the first bit of Doctor Strange concept art featuring Benedict Cumberbatch as the title character.
If you were worried the film would tamp down the more aspects of the character, don't be. "It's one of the things that's important to us in telling a magical story, is keeping it grounded but still leaving enough room to have really cool and unique visual ideas to explore," says executive producer Stephen Broussard. Adds Feige: "How do you put that on a screen within this cinematic universe? That is, you know, one of the primary goals of that movie."
That is the big question, but so far Marvel has done a surprisingly good job of balancing different tones across all its projects. The more grounded Iron Man and Captain America films feel light-years away from the colorful outer space of Guardians of the Galaxy or the regal Asgardian halls of Thor, but when the characters come together for an Avengers film they still feel like they belong in the same universe. Hopefully Doctor Strange can continue that trend even as it digs deep into magic and sorcery.
Moving on from the magic, one of the most intriguing elements about Doctor Strange so far is its cast. Feige gushes that getting Cumberbatch on board was "huge for us," while Derrickson notes, "Benedict has got an incredibly complicated emotional structure going on." Surrounding Cumberbatch is an all-star lineup that includes Chiwetel Ejiofor, Tilda Swinton, Mads Mikkelsen, Rachel McAdams, and Scott Adkins, but the filmmakers don't get into it here.
Doctor Strange arrives in theaters November 4, 2016, which means we've still got eleven months' worth of rumors, theories, speculation, and marketing materials to get through. Until we get a real Doctor Strange teaser, enjoy a spectacular fan imagining of the title sequence below: