Dr. Strange will appear in the MCU’s thirdSpider-Manmovie, once again played by Benedict Cumberbatch. He joins a cast that includes Tom Holland, once again playing Peter Parker/Spider-Man, and Jamie Foxx, who’sreprising his role as Max “Electro” Dillonfrom Sony’sAmazing Spider-Manfilms.
The capacity that Strange will play in the as-yet-untitledSpider-Mansequel(Homeschooled? Home is Where the Heart Is? Homebodies?)has not been disclosed, but Cumberbatch is scheduled to start filming the secondDr. Strangemovie,Dr. Strange and the Multiverse of Madness, in London at around the same time thatSpider-Man 3is filming in Atlanta. It’s probably safe to assume that Cumberbatch will have what amounts to an extended cameo, similar to his one-scene-wonderpart inThor: Ragnarok.
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Other returning MCU vets forSpider-Man 3include Jon Watts, coming back for a third film as director afterHomecomingandFar From Home.It’s widely assumed but not officially confirmed that Marisa Tomei, Tony Revolori, Jacob Batalon, andZendaya will all also returnfor the third movie.Spider-Man 3’s script is reportedly to be co-written by Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers, who both have screenplay credits onFar From Home, Homecoming,andAnt-Man and the Wasp.
While next to nothing is known about eitherSpider-Man 3orMultiverse of Madness’s plot so far, the introduction of Foxx’s version of Electro from theAmazing Spider-Manfilms by Sony to the MCU has been the cause of a lot of fan speculation over the last week. This is the first time a previous live-action version of a Marvel character has “crossed over” to the MCU, so it’s hard not to wonder if Electro might be explained asbeing from an alternate Earthin the Marvel multiverse. This is further fueled by the upcoming debut of the Disney+ seriesWhat If?,which will explore alternate outcomes from events in the MCU, and likely by the existence of Sony’s dimension-crossing mega-hitEnter the Spider-Verse
Doctor Strange and Spider-Man have a long-standing friendship in Marvel Comics, running all the way back to the original Stan Lee/Steve Ditko run onThe Amazing Spider-Man. The characters, both of whom were co-created by Lee and Ditko, first met in 1965’sASM Annual#2, where Spider-Man inadvertently stumbled into a plot by one of Strange’s enemies to steal a magical relic from Strange’s New York sanctum. Over the next 55 years, Strange has consistently been one of Spider-Man’s go-to allies, and vice versa. Cumberbatch’s Strange making a cameo in aSpider-Manfilm, then, hasa much firmer basis in canonthan newcomers to Marvel might realize.
Spider-Man 3is scheduled to begin shooting later this month, aiming for a Aug 02, 2025 release date.
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