1. Doctor Strange is an upcoming American superhero film featuring the Marvel Comics character of the same name, produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.
2. It is intended to be the fourteenth film of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).
3. The film is directed by Scott Derrickson with a screenplay by Jon Spaihts and C. Robert Cargill, and stars Benedict Cumberbatch, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Rachel McAdams, Michael Stuhlbarg, Mads Mikkelsen, and Tilda Swinton. In Doctor Strange, surgeon Stephen Strange learns from the Ancient One after a career-ending car accident.
4. Various incarnations of a Doctor Strange film have been in development since the mid-1980s until Paramount Pictures acquired the film rights in April 2005 on behalf of Marvel Studios.
5. Thomas Dean Donnelly and Joshua Oppenheimer were brought on board in June 2010 to write a screenplay.
6. In June 2014, Derrickson was hired to direct the film. Cumberbatch was chosen for the eponymous role in December 2014, and at the same time, Spaihts was confirmed to be rewriting the script.
7. A year later, Cargill revealed he worked on the script. The film began principal photography in November 2015 in Nepal before moving to the United Kingdom.
8. Additional filming is expected to take place in New York and Hong Kong.
9. Doctor Strange is scheduled to be released on November 4, 2016 in IMAX.
10. The plot: After Stephen Strange, the world’s top neurosurgeon, is injured in a car accident that ruins his career, he sets out on a journey of healing, where he encounters the Ancient One, who later becomes Strange’s mentor in the mystic arts.
11. Benedict Cumberbatch as Stephen Strange / Doctor Strange.
12. Principal photography began in Nepal on November 4, 2015, with filming in and around the Kathmandu Valley, including: the Pashupatinath and Swayambhunath Temples; Thamel and New Road in Kathmandu; and the Patan Durbar Square in Patan. Production moved to Longcross Studios in the United Kingdom on November 11, and is scheduled to stay there until March 2016.
13. Filming is also expected to take place at Pinewood-Shepperton and Shepperton Studios in the UK, as well as in London, New York and Hong Kong.
14. In December 2015, C. Robert Cargill revealed he had been working on the script for the past year. The next month Benedict Wong was cast as Wong, Strange’s valet.
15. Doctor Strange is scheduled to be released on October 28, 2016 in the United Kingdom, and November 4, 2016 in North America in IMAX.
16. Before becoming the Sorcerer Supreme, Stephen Strange received training at an Eastern monastery. Benedict Cumberbatch spent his gap year volunteering as an English teacher at a Buddhist monastery in Darjeeling, India. He has stated that the experience was very profound and influential on his life, and sought to draw from this experience in preparing for the role.
17. Benedict Cumberbatch initially had to decline the role due to scheduling conflicts. When the release date was pushed back from July 2016 to November 2016, Cumberbatch was able to commit to shooting.
18. There is a slim chance that Scarlet Witch from Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015) is Dr Strange’s apprentice in this film. This is in keeping with the comics, where she served under Strange as his apprentice and pupil.
19. The film has been in development since 1986.
20. Benedict Cumberbatch states that the spiritualism of Doctor Strange is what appeals to him the most about the role: “I’m very excited about that spiritual dimension. It’s something that’s been a huge part of my life. I meditate a lot, that’s a huge tool in trying to calm myself, get away from the crazy circus of it all, have a focused mind as well as be a kinder, considerate person in the world.”
21. According to Kevin Feige, the concept of magic in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is inspired by The Matrix (1999) and the fantasy works of Stanley Kubrick and Hayao Miyazaki: “Have you watched the Cosmos (1980) series? That’s magic, the quantum physics. If somebody knew how to tap into that stuff, what’s the difference between that and magic? You don’t get into it in Harry Potter, but if a scientist went to Hogwarts he’d find out how some of that stuff is happening! We’re not going to spend a lot of time on it, but there will be some of that, particularly for a character like Dr Strange, who goes from a man of science to a man of faith and who traverses both worlds. And sometimes there won’t be an answer! Sometimes he’ll want an answer – ‘How is this happening?’ – and nothing.”
22. Benedict Cumberbatch embarked on a strict training regimen by hitting the gym with the use of a personal trainer to beef up for the role. Cumberbatch would drink protein shakes and eat double the amount of calories.
23. Benedict Cumberbatch was the first choice and was offered the lead role of Stephen Strange but initially had to decline due to his theatre commitments playing Shakespeare’s Hamlet which will clash with the film’s proposed shooting date. Joaquin Phoenix was the studio’s second choice for the lead role but Phoenix, after a few months of deliberation, eventually turned down the offer due to his reluctance to do a multi-picture deal that was required by the studio if he signed on.
24. According to Marvel producer Kevin Feige, starting with Doctor Strange Marvel movies will no longer start with an origin story. Meaning that at the beginning of the film, he will already be Doctor Strange, the Sorcerer Supreme.
25. “Doctor Strange” creators Stan Lee and Steve Ditko based his appearance on Hollywood actor Vincent Price. He even bears the middle name of Vincent.
26. In the comics, the Ancient One is an old man; in this film, the Ancient One is played by a woman. This was a deliberate decision as Scott Derrickson felt the Ancient One was a title rather than a person.
27. Morgan Freeman, Ken Watanabe and Bill Nighy were considered for the role of The Ancient One.
28. Doctor Strange (2016) will be the fourteenth film to be released by Marvel Studios for the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
29. Chapter Two of Phase Three in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
30. In 1992, Wes Craven was set to direct. Later in 2001, David S. Goyer was going to write and direct. In 2008, Guillermo del Toro was brought on as director. In 2014, Mark Andrews, Jonathan Levine, Nikolaj Arcel, Scott Derrickson and Dean Israelite were on the shortlist to direct. In the end, Derrickson was officially announced to helm the film.
31. Gary Oldman and Mads Mikkelsen were considered for the role of Baron Mordo.
32. Patrick Dempsey publicly expressed an interest in playing Stephen Strange.
33. JoBlo reported that the film will feature two villains: Dormammu and Baron Mordo.
34. Colin Farrell, Jake Gyllenhaal, Tom Hardy, Ethan Hawke Jack Huston, Oscar Isaac, Jared Leto, Matthew McConaughey, Ewan McGregor, Keanu Reeves, Justin Theroux, Jon Hamm, Johnny Depp, & Joseph Gordon-Levitt were all considered or rumored for the role of Stephen Strange.
35. Doctor Strange’s costume is similar to the comics but the design has been slightly modified in order to fit him in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
36. Mads Mikkelsen is rumored to play Mephistopheles.
37. Cinematographer Ben Davis cites the Disney experimental film Fantasia (1940) as a visual influence on the film: “It has a very psychedelic grounding, and most of the work is about other dimensions.”
38. Is rumored to be in the “Thriller/Horror” genre.
39. Baron Mordo is based on his comic version (a rival of Dr Strange), and incorporates elements of Brother Voodoo (a voodoo priest) and Kaluu (a master of black magic).
40. The Ancient One’s kingdom is in the snowy Northern Himalayas.
41. Mads Mikkelsen’s character is a sorcerer.
42. A part of the filming is happening in Nepal, Asia.
43. This is the second Marvel film to feature actors from two different Sherlock Holmes series. Benedict Cumberbatch plays the title role on ‘Sherlock (2010)(TV)’, while Rachel McAdams appeared in Sherlock Holmes (2009). McAdams appeared opposite Robert Downey Jr. in the title role. Downey also plays Iron Man in the Marvel films, most recently in Captain America: Civil war (2016), which also features Martin Freeman, who plays Dr. Watson opposite Cumberbatch.
44. Rachel McAdams character plays a fellow surgeon of Strange.
45. Benedict Cumberbatch is the fifth Sherlock Holmes actor to appear in a Marvel feature:
- Christopher Lee played Holmes in Sherlock Holmes and the Leading Lady (1991), and was the enemy in Captain America II: Death Too Soon (1979)
- Jeremy Brett played Holmes in The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (1984) and was in an episode of The Incredible Hulk (1978)
- Robert Downey Jr. plays Sherlock Holmes in a film series, and appeared as Tony Stark in the Marvel Cinematic Universe
- and Ian McKellen played Holmes (2015), and appeared as Magneto in the X-Men film series.
46. In the original comics, the Ancient One was a man.
47. Benedict Cumberbatch and Chiwetel Ejiofor, who play enemies in this film, previously co-starred in 12 Years a Slave (2013) as allies.
48. Like other Marvel movies, this movie could have both after and or post credit scenes.
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