Doctor Strange 2 Under Endgame-Level Secrecy By Disney

Footage of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness will be kept under tight wraps, as the entire film will not be seen before its May 2nd premiere. The ambitious, large-scale sequel helmed by horror director icon Sam Raimi will have its wide theatrical release on May 6th following the L.A. premiere event. The film stars Benedict Cumberbatch as the returning Marvel superhero, alongside Elizabeth Olsen, Benedict Wong, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Xochitl Gomez, and Rachel McAdams.

Following on from the universe-breaking actions that Doctor Strange made in Spider-Man: No Way Home, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is set to test the sorcerer even further than before. Between the return of Mordo (Ejiofor), the sudden appearance of the dimension-traveling America Chavez (Gomez), and the darker turn of Wanda Maximoff (Olsen), Strange is about to enter a world of limitless potential and possibilities as he traverses the Multiverse. With Wong teasing plenty of surprises for fans and the already confirmed return of Patrick Stewart as a Variant of X-Men‘s Professor Xavier, Multiverse of Madness is shaping up to be one of Marvel’s most ambitious solo films in the MCU so far. Both Marvel Studios and The Walt Disney Company ensure that the film remains unspoiled before its first official public screenings.

As reported by Rob Keyes and Erik Davis on Twitter, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness will not be screened in its entirety until the film’s L.A. premiere on May 2nd. The film will not be previewed ahead of press junket interviews, with the L.A. screening being the first event where people can see the entire movie. Disney did this to avoid spoilers leaking and keep surprises hidden until as close to release as possible.

Multiverse of Madness follows Avengers Endgame‘s emphasis on the audience avoiding spoilers ahead of release. Disney employs similar strategies on both films to ensure the story’s twists and surprises are hidden. Before Endgame’s release, Marvel Studios and Disney were incredibly selective about what footage would be shown to interviewers ahead of the film’s press junket, only showing the movie up until Captain Marvel’s (Brie Larson) rescue of Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr) in the film’s first act. The company also employed the strategy during Star Wars‘ theatrical releases, with each film made under the company only being seen in its entirety for the first time at their premiere events.

With Raimi teasing that the sequel builds upon No Way Home‘s events, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness has the potential to expand the universe in ways few solo Marvel films have. Beyond returning faces from Marvel’s movie past and surprise appearances from highly anticipated characters, its multiversal plot and continuation of Wanda’s story from WandaVision can have enormous implications for the MCU going forward, on both the big and small screens. As Marvel and Disney take every measure possible to keep the film a secret ahead of its premiere, the next chapter in the MCU may end up being even more of a must-watch chapter in the ongoing saga than fans currently realize.