Marvel Pushes Back 'Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness' And 'Spider-Man 3', Bumps Up 'Thor: Love & Thunder' Just A Smidge

Almost all the news about movies nowadays is about release dates being pushed back due to the shutdown of production during the coronavirus pandemic and also the closure of nearly all movie theaters around the United States. Marvel Studios recently made some big changes to their schedule over the next couple years, but apparently that wasn't enough. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness has been pushed back again, this time into the spring of 2022, and Spider-Man 3 has shifted too. Meanwhile, Thor: Love & Thunder has been bumped up just a bit.

Variety has word that the Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, previously set for release in November 2021, will now be released the following spring on March 25, 2022. Originally, the sequel was slated to start production in June, but it's likely that the coronavirus pandemic has upended those plans.

There's also a chance the production just isn't ready to move forward. After all, director/writer Scott Derrickson and co-writer C. Robert Cargill left the project not too long ago after creative differences with Marvel Studios. They've since been replaced by director Sam Raimi (Spider-Man) and writer Michael Waldron, who is currently the Loki showrunner.

Benedict Cumberbatch will be reprising his role as the Sorcerer Supreme, and Benedict Wong will be back as his buddy Wong. Chiwetel Ejiofor was hinted to take a villainous turn in a scene after the credits, and it seems like he's coming back too. There have been rumblings that Rachel McAdams won't be returning as the female lead, but Elizabeth Olsen will play a key role as Scarlet Witch, and the character's Disney+ series WandaVision will have some kind of direct tie to the sequel.

Hot on the heels of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse being pushed back, Marvel's collaboration with Sony Picutres on Spider-Man 3 will be delayed too. The movie has been pushed from July 2021 to November 5, 2021, which explains why Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness has been delayed to spring of 2022.

Tom Holland is back as Spider-Man along with Zendaya as MJ, and Jon Watts will be directing again. Otherwise, we're not sure about the movie's plot, other than the fact that the movie will probably address the reveal of Spider-Man's secret identity in the mid-credits scene from Spider-Man: Far From Home. Otherwise, the movie might provide some kind of exit for Spider-Man from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, since Marvel and Sony only struck a deal for one more Spider-Man movie and an appearance in one other Marvel Studios project.

One final change to Marvel's upcoming schedule (for the time being) has Taika Waititi's upcoming Thor: Love & Thunder heading to theaters on February 11, 2022 instead of the previously set date a week later. The title would seem to indicate that this could be a good Valentine's Day date movie, so that might have influenced Marvel's scheduling a bit.

Chris Hemsworth is returning as the God of Thunder, but Natalie Portman will also be coming back to the franchise as Jane Foster, who will be taking on the mantle of Thor as well, inspired by a character arc from Marvel Comics. Tessa Thompson will also reprise her role as Valkyie, and Christian Bale is playing an unknown role in the sequel, possibly as the film's villain.

Just to catch everyone up on the Marvel Studios schedule for the next couple years, here's what it looks like now: