Doctor Strange actor Benedict Cumberbatch has praised his Spider-Man: No Way Home co-star Tom Holland. Cumberbatch told Esquire that Holland’s was “utterly, utterly gobsmackingly brilliant.” Cumberbatch also joked that despite being a 45-year-old man, he’d never quite got over the giddy excitement of appearing onscreen with Spider-Man.
“All the time when you’re making those movies are pinch-yourself moments,” he explained. “I’m never over the giddy nature of working opposite Spider-Man. It’s pretty cool.” The former Sherlock star went on to say that he enjoys committing to the role of Doctor Strange, recognising that, yes, it is “daft” but added: “it’s also really enjoyable and intoxicating and should be celebrated as well and treated for what it is, which is fun.”
That said, Cumberbatch did admit to having some hesitation about taking on the role, worrying that the character’s sixties origin was outdated. “I kind of had my doubts about it, from just going into the comics,” he explained. “I thought, ‘This is a very dated, sexist character’. And it’s very tied up in that crossover, that kind of East meets West occultism movement of the Sixties and Seventies.”
Bosses at Marvel were able to ease these concerns by promising that the character would be updated to be “of the now,” and Cumberbatch agreed to take on the role after meeting with horror movie director Scott Derrickson. The rest, as they say, is history.
Cumberbatch is set to play a critical role in the next Spider-Man film, casting a spell that’s supposed to make people forget Spidey’s secret identity. Unfortunately, it seems like something will go wrong, and we suspect that Strange will be responsible for bringing the old villains, Doc Ock, Green Goblin, and Electro, into the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
After that, Strange will be taking a trip into the multiverse of madness with the Scarlet Witch. We’ve no clue what will happen in that, but there have been teases that director Sam Raimi is working to make the film the first MCU horror movie.
Spider-Man No Way Home swings in theatres on December 17, while Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is set for a May 6, 2022 release.