Director Sam Raimi Never Thought a Doctor Strange Movie Would Happen

Sam Raimi's last venture into superhero films was back in 2007, halting Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man trilogy. After more than a decade of hiatus, Sam Raimi is officially back in the MCU and helmed the upcoming highly-anticipated Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. However, in a recent interview, Raimi shared that he never thought that a Doctor Strange film would ever happen on the big screens with Marvel.

In a recent interview with AMC theatres, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness director Sam Raimi sat down to discuss his upcoming MCU film. When asked about why he decided to helm Doctor Strange, Raimi responded, "[Doctor Strange] was like a second or third-tier character for Marvel, Obviously, their big popular names were Spider-Man, Fantastic Four, The Avengers, Captain America, Thor. And because none of those other movies were being made, I actually never imagined they would make a Doctor Strange movie. Just seemed far from possible."

Despite Spider-Man 3's negative reviews, Raimi remained hopeful about directing Marvel superhero films. "But then, I found out that there was an opening on Doctor Strange 2," Raimi added, "My agent called me and said, 'They're looking for a director at Marvel for this movie and your name came up. Would you be interested?' And I thought, 'I wonder if I could still do it.' They're really demanding, those types of pictures. And I felt, 'Well, that's reason enough.'"

Well, life is full of twists. Nonetheless, with how Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is shaping up right now as evidenced by the TV spots and trailers, looks like Marvel made the best decision in choosing Raimi to helm the project. With Raimi's background in several horror projects, he certainly incorporated some of the frightening elements to the Doctor Strange sequel.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness will follow the titular character with one of the strongest Avengers, Scarlet Witch, and their multiversal adventure. The sequel will also feature Wong, Christine Palmer, and MCU newcomer America Chavez.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness will premiere in theaters on May 4.