It appears development is moving right along, as news out of Marvel Studios is that Jade Bartlett has been tapped as the official screenwriter for Doctor Strange: In The Multiverse of Madness.
With this addition to the Supreme Sorcerer’s second solo outing having been announced, it would seem that the plan is to add a little new blood for the franchise’s sequel.
In case you didn’t know already, the film will once again feature Benedict Cumberbatch in the titular role of the mystical Doctor himself, Stephen Strange. It has also been announced that the storyline of the upcoming sequel will follow the events of both Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.
Image: Inverse
Although Bartlett has been added as the screenwriter, Scott Derrickson will once again return to direct, having done such a bang-up job with the franchise’s first entry. Bartlett’s addition to the film has raised a few questions and speculations.
It’s being rumored that C. Robert Cargill, who penned the first film, has also written a follow up for the second movie. If this is so, does it mean that Bartlett is onboard to give Cargill’s version a rewrite? Or, will Bartlett be starting from scratch with her very own conceptualization?
Image: Entertainment Weekly
Whether entirely new or a rewrite, there are some aspects of the storyline that will undoubtedly have to remain intact. We already know that the villain for the sequel is none other than Nightmare and that Scarlett Witch, portrayed in the Avengers franchise by Elizabeth Olsen, will be by the good Doctor’s side.
Either way, one thing is for sure—this sequel has been way too long in coming to the screen. If fans recall, by the time Doctor Strange 2 does finally hit the box office, it will be a long and unheard of FIVE years between films.
That does not mean to say that we haven’t seen Strange in those five years—as he has popped up in other films within the MCU, including Thor: Ragnarok and both Infinity War and Endgame.