Cumberbatch Shoots Down Doctor Strange’s No Way Home Spell Criticism

Benedict Cumberbatch defends Doctor Strange’s spell in Spider-Man: No Way Home, stating that it was approached with good intentions. Cumberbatch’s latest appearance in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness will officially release in theaters later this week, with excitement for this latest MCU installment currently at an all-time high. The film will follow on from last year’s Spider-Man: No Way Home and will see Elizabeth Olsen return to the big screen as Wanda Maximoff, otherwise known as the Scarlet Witch. Cumberbatch’s fellow Doctor Strange alumni Chiwetel Ejiofor and Rachel McAdams are also set to reprise their roles in this hotly anticipated sequel that sees Sam Raimi make his MCU directorial debut.

Spider-Man: No Way Home saw Peter Parker (Tom Holland) approach Doctor Strange in the hope of finding a way to make the world forget that he is Spider-Man after his identity was revealed by Mysterio in the final moments of Spider-Man: Far From Home. While reluctant at first, Strange decides to help his fellow Avenger, however, the spell quickly goes awry after Peter begins to unknowingly meddle with it, leading to a multiversal split in which any number of beings from various universes are able to cross over into the MCU’s sacred timeline. Since the first trailer for Spider-Man: No Way Home was released, Strange’s decision to help Peter has been a popular topic of discussion, and now Cumberbatch has offered his two cents.

In conversation with THR recently, Cumberbatch discussed Strange’s motivations in helping Peter, sharing that ultimately the spell was initiated with “good intention[s].” Bringing up the previous criticism of Strange’s spell himself, Cumberbatch revealed that, in his opinion, the spell may have likely been fine had Peter not interrupted Strange during the process, stating that “everyone forgets” that it was Peter’s involvement that caused the catastrophic events that followed. Cumberbatch continued by saying “[Strange was] right to want to help Peter.” Check out Cumberbatch’s full quote below.

He’s a human being, and I think it was a very human error. He saw Peter as a fellow foot soldier and then as a teenager going through a very formative experience of not being able to be his true self because of being exposed, and having lost a mentor, [Strange] decided to step in with a gesture of pretty good intention.

But people seemed to think, “Well, it’s a very cavalier thing to do.” I think the spell, on its own, might have been all right. Everyone forgets that Peter interrupts the spell so many times, and that’s what corrupted it. That’s what lets it in. Peter, through the ability he has with his powers, affects the spell with his words. It’s not really Strange’s mistake. He’s right to want to help Peter. What kind of superhero would he be if he didn’t want to help another superhero?

Cumberbatch went on to say that, ultimately, he empathizes with a superhero who makes mistakes “because of their humanity,” sharing that he is grateful for the opportunity to play a character that does. With Strange’s spell having opened the door to infinite possibilities when it comes to future storytelling in the MCU, it remains to be seen just how this multiversal clean-up will impact Strange in this upcoming sequel, as well as how it could lead into future phase 4 projects within the MCU. With Strange’s fate currently unknown, Cumberbatch recently revealed that he has no intentions of giving up Strange’s cloak just yet, revealing that he still has “a lot left to give” to this beloved character.

Cumberbatch presents a strong case as to why his attempts to help Peter in Spider-Man: No Way Home can certainly be justified, at least to a certain degree. While Doctor Strange may be incredibly knowledgable and would have likely recognized the presented risks, the sorcerer deciding to lead with his heart is certainly one of the more grounded and human aspects of Doctor Strange that have been presented across his MCU history. It will be interesting to see what’s next for the character as he deals with the repercussions of the multiverse opening up.