What is Marvel’s Time Runs Out comic? ‘Doctor Strange 3’ rumors, explained

Though it hasn’t been all that long since Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness came out, there are already hints that a third Doctor Strange film is possibly in the works. The rumors circulating suggest the upcoming film will look into Stephen Strange’s role in the destruction of the multiverse and introduce a whole new multiversal sect to worry about.

The latest online rumblings claim that the third Doctor Strange film will partly adapt the Marvel comic story, Time Runs Out. The story, written by Jonathan Hickman and illustrated by Stefano Caselli, follows the Avengers along with multiple Marvel agencies and groups, working together to try to stop the destruction of the multiverse with everyone at risk of being wiped out of existence. The story is meant to lead into Secret Wars, which has led some to speculate this third installment of the franchise will come before the final Avengers film of the current Multiverse Saga.

Doctor Strange’s role in the multiverse

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness started off from where Spider-Man: No Way Home and WandaVision finished. With No Way Home, we became aware of the existence of the multiverse and how Doctor Strange had the power, even if it was an accident, to bring the multiverses colliding together. He was able to fix the rogue spell that saw the Spider-Verse leaking into Earth-616, but it had repercussions that not even Strange could comprehend.

His next outing, in his second solo film, took us across the multiverse exploring different variations of Earth and his character, and finding that in many cases, rather than being the hero, Strange was often the problem. Earth-838’s Christine Palmer warns Strange that he is one of the biggest threats to the multiverse, and we may see more of why that is in the third film. The post-credits scene at the end of Multiverse of Madness showed Stephen Strange strolling on the street, when Clea, a yet unknown character in the MCU confronts him about the mess he has caused, saying, “You caused an incursion, and we’re going to fix it.”

This sets up the possibility that Strange will either be the downfall or savior of the multiverse. It also leaves comic book fans with the impression that perhaps we will soon be introduced to the multiverse organization known as The Black Priests, of which Clea is a member. The idea of another Strange film does have weight behind it, given the rumors that Benedict Cumberbatch is returning to the MCU soon.

What is Time Runs Out about?

This rumor, that the next film will adapt elements from the Time Runs Out story, came courtesy of The Cosmic Circus and its sources. Now, the entire story won’t be copied and pasted, for starters it includes characters like Iron Man, who have passed on, but certain plot points could certainly be woven into the MCU.

The story contains certain elements we have already seen in the MCU, Stark and Rogers fighting one another, a larger threat looming; all things the MCU has incorporated in Captain America: Civil War, Infinity War and Endgame. The crux of the story is that the multiverse is decaying and so heroes set out, through different organizations, to find out what the source of this decay is. Here, Doctor Strange is leading The Black Priests whose mission it is to get to the bottom of this multiversal rot.

As all the differing groups race against the clock to save the last two remaining universes, that of Earth-616 and one containing Earth-1610, Stark and Rogers are still fighting it out and Reed Rogers attempts to save a select few from the upcoming destruction of the last two multiverses. The villains are revealed to be a race from beyond the multiverse, aptly named The Beyonders. The ending of Time Runs Out leads into Hickman’s Secret Wars storyline.

How could Time Runs Out be adapted for Doctor Strange 3?

One individual who is missing from the above story that we know is almost definitely a huge part of the current saga is Kang the Conqueror. The current MCU sage is focused on Kang (assuming they are going ahead with Jonathan Majors in the role) and his desire to dominate the multiverse, so they could be switching out The Beyonders for Kang.

The Cosmic Circus believes that the next Doctor Strange film will potentially set up Stephen as one of the common denominators for the downfall of the multiverse. It will apparently be positioned to lead directly into the final two Avengers films of the current saga. One thing that is clearly stressed is that this information came prior to the current strikes taking place, and that, when writers get back to work (with the fair pay and residuals they deserve hopefully) this could all change with rewrites.

So, the Infinity Saga ended with the semi-destruction of the universe and its revival, perhaps a similar thing will play out here, just on the larger scale of the multiverse instead? We don’t yet know whether this is how it will pan out, but given Strange’s consistent interference with the multiverse, it doesn’t seem entirely implausible.