By: Keaton Marcus

After some speculation on who would helm the anticipated superhero sequel Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness, they have decided to hire Sam Raimi to direct. Star Benedict Cumberbatch will return as the iconic superhero, though what’s now confirmed is that Scott Derrickson, who directed the first movie, will not be returning. Raimi, however, is a very good choice. Raimi confirmed his involvement while promoting his recent Quibi show 50 States of Fright. He said “I loved Doctor Strange as a kid. He was always after Spider-Man and Batman for me. He was probably number 5 for me for great comic book characters. He was so original.”

Critics tended to agree with the director. The original Doctor Strange movie scored an excellent 89% “Certified Fresh” on Rotten Tomatoes. It also grossed over 677 million at the global box office, which isn’t a particularly large amount for the MCU, but it easily broke even. Whether moviegoers will turn up in similar numbers even after several years between the first and second movie isn’t yet known, as it doesn’t come out till next year. However, we are talking about a Marvel movie here, people will go.

In case you didn’t know, Raimi is known for directing acclaimed horror films such as Drag Me to Hell and The Ring as well as the Evil Dead series. Most importantly, he directed the Tobey Maguire-starring Spider-Man trilogy. This proves that he has some good experience in the genre. He is also known to have produced a couple Grudge adaptations and helming the popular Oz the Great and Powerful, which got mixed reception but earned over 473 million at the box office. Overall, he’s a pretty great director, and should do a solid job at this sequel.

While we are all kinda bummed that Scott Derrickson has stepped down from the project, he responded positively to the idea of Raimi taking over. He said “I’ve worked with Sam Raimi. One of the nicest people I’ve known in the film business, and as a director, a true living legend. What a great choice to take over Doctor Strange.” Too bad we’ll have to wait a little while.

Originally, Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness was going to begin production this May and be released the same month next year. However, due to Coronavirus concerns, it will now be released on November 5th, 2021. So catch it in theaters then!