18 Mad Facts About Doctor Strange And Superhero Movies
We're coming up on the release of the new Doctor Strange movie, so that's got us taking a close look at the character. He's had some strange past movies, and strange alternate forms, as well as some strange legal controversies. We've also been thinking about Marvel movies in general, including the future of the franchise and the way marketing always lies.
Benedict Cumberbatch is the star of the show, so we've been looking extra hard at him of course, whether he's acting as a hero in real life, starring in other movies, or embarrassing himself like a fool.
Here's a look back at the facts we learned. The links all lead to full articles with much more info, so click every one that interests you, else the Scarlet Witch will turn your mind into mush.
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1. The first Doctor Strange film was a weird, forgotten '70s TV movie.
Strange is a psychiatrist comic nerd here, and Arrested Development's Jessica Walter plays the villain.
2. Benedict Cumberbatch did the most pointless nudity onstage.
He went full-frontal when playing the creature in Frankenstein, and it's not totally clear that this helped the play.
3. What's at 177 Bleecker in IRL New York City (it's not the Sanctum Sanctorum).
In fact, it's kind of weird they gave the fictional place a real address, but there's a reason.
4. Kevin Feige went to CinemaCon and hinted at the MCU's future.
No, he didn't say anything that hinted at its future. But we can see some hints anyway, by looking at his hat.
5. Benedict Cumberbatch saved a delivery guy from muggers.
He left his Uber when on the way to a club and chased the gang off.
6. Elizabeth Olsen's spellcasting training involved dance.
They brought in a choreographer and taught her the finger movements, which she called "wiggly-woo."
7. Infinity War's most shared promo shot was a scene appearing only the trailer.
8. No Way Home featured some truly gratuitous CGI.
Even Doctor Strange's magic box wasn’t a prop—the actors held a green wire cube, which special effects could replace.
9. Fans are convinced Idris Elba was miscast as Heimdall.
The reason? They should have given him a lead part, not made him a recurring side character.
10. Dr. Strange's Infinity War prediction is ethical trash.
If you buy his idea that they had only one way to win, everyone's stupid decisions magically become good decisions, and that makes everything very silly.
11. Benedict Cumberbatch is IRL-related to many of his movie characters.
He's related to Richard III, Alan Turing, and Arthur Conan Doyle ... though this may say more about the obsessiveness of genealogists than it does about Benedict Cumberbatch.
12. Doctor Strange is cool (except in his own movie).
When you see the wizard cross paths with other heroes, it's more fun to forget that he was a non-magical New Yorker just a couple years ago.
13. Benedict Cumberbatch almost played the villain in Thor: The Dark World.
14. Doctor Strange has a lot of variants if we look at spinoff and ripoffs.
We ranked them all, including Ducktor Strange and that one from The Venture Bros.
15. Benedict Cumberbatch and Chiwetel Ejiofor's last film won Oscars (from voters who never saw it).
Oscar voters who picked 12 Years a Slave for Best Picture privately admitted they hadn't actually watched the film.
16. One old superhero movie definitely deserves more attention: Darkman.
He wasn't Marvel or DC, but he was played by Liam Neeson and directed by Sam Raimi.
17. Benedict Cumberbatch did (useless) motion capture for Smaug.
This Hobbit behind-the-scenes footage is fun to watch, but it made the guy feel like an idiot, and the movie never actually used it.
18. Doctor Strange once got sued by a Christian singer.
Amy Grant said the comic book had stolen her image for a cover—and she was right.
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