Let’s face it: If any filmmaker can craft Marvel’s first “horror” movie, it’s Sam Raimi.
Raimi not only has the horror chops–as the creator of the Evil Dead universe and the director of 1990’s Darkman and 2009’s Drag Me To Hell–but he also kickstarted Marvel’s super-hero dominance by helming the first Spider–Man trilogy from 2002-2007.
And, in a recent interview, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige said the acclaimed director is combining both worlds with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and placing the “Sam Raimi stamp on Doctor Strange.”
Feige said everything done at Marvel Studios is “from the point of view of the audience or how to evoke an emotion out of an audience,” according to a report on movieweb.com. “I really feel I learned that from watching Sam on the Spider–Man movies.”
And now, Feige continued, “being in a position that Sam is back in the Marvel universe and working for us on Doctor Strange, it’s quite remarkable and full circle for me personally. It’s just exciting to watch Sam work again, and to see him put his Sam Raimi stamp on Doctor Strange, on the Multiverse and on Marvel.”
Feige added that for those who know what that stamp is, “they can be very excited. And for people who don’t yet know, I can’t wait for them to see this movie, be blown away by it and say, ‘What else has he done?’ and delve into Sam Raimi’s filmography–which is one of the best of all time.”
Screenwriter Michael Waldron said the original Doctor Strange has a “spookiness” about it, adding that “I’m glad there was the chance to push (the sequel) in a slightly scarier direction. Just because Sam does that so well.”
Elizabeth Olsen–who stars in the film as the Scarlet Witch alongside Benedict Cumberbatch’s Stephen Strange–echoed those sentiments, saying the movie will explore the “feeling of constant fear and thrill and misleads” for which the horror genre is famous.
“It’s a very scary movie,” Olsen said. “It’s old Sam Raimi. They’re trying to create the scariest Marvel movie.”
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness–slated to hit theaters March 25, 2022–is directed by Raimi from a screenplay by Waldron and Jade Bartlett. The film also stars Benedict Wong as Wong, Rachel McAdams as Christine Palmer, Chiwetel Ejiofor as Mordo and Xochitl Gomez as America Chavez.
The Marvel Comics character of Doctor Strange–created by writer/editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko (the same team that brought Spider-Man to life)–first appeared in Strange Tales No. 110 in 1963.
Keep reading Horror News Network for any further updates on Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
