Tony Stark and Doctor Strange have always possessed a lot of similarities within the context of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and we’re not just talking about their shared penchant for immaculately-curated goatees.
Plenty of fans and critics pointed out that both of their feature-length solo debuts hit an alarming number of almost identical plot beats; focusing on an expert in their field that’s arrogant to the point of narcissism, only to suffer a life-changing misfortune that sets them on the path to heroism while they embrace their newfound sense of identity.
To hammer things home even harder, the Sorcerer Supreme is replacing Iron Man as Peter Parker’s new mentor in Spider-Man: No Way Home, although things don’t appear to be going too well for the former surgeon based on what we saw in the first trailer.
In a new interview with Empire Magazine, Cumberbatch teased the dynamic between the Master of the Mystic Arts and Tom Holland’s exuberant Peter Parker, which is set to underpin the entire multiversal narrative.
“There’s a shade of the Stark relationship. It’s not as intimate to begin with. Because of how experienced a superhero he is, it’s a strange dynamic and it kind of shifts into something far more parental and corrective. And then it shifts again.”
Rumors continue to spread that Doctor Strange will be revealed as an imposter, but we don’t really mind where his arc ends up heading, as long as his relationship with Spider-Man doesn’t retread the ground we’ve already seen covered when Robert Downey Jr. was occupying the father figure role.
