At a time when box office takings have been down across the board, Spider-Man: No Way Home proved to be a phenomenal success when it landed in theaters last December, earning well over $1 billion worldwide. While there are a number of much-anticipated movies coming out in 2022, it’s hard to imagine many of them nipping at NWH‘s heels. However,Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness star Benedict Cumberbatch thinks his next big MCU appearance can match it.
Speaking to Empire, the actor made the bold prediction that the incoming Doctor Strange 2 will find “success on the level of Spidey.” He thinks its multiversal scope and “level of ambition” will hook audiences the same way that No Way Home, which he also appeared in, did.
It’s a big, big movie. It’s going to be an absolute riot. And if it brings off the level of ambition it’s got, we’re going to have a success on the level of Spidey. There you go, I’ll put my flag in the sand.
While it is a big claim, you can see why Cumberbatch is so certain about the sequel’s success. Cinemagoers are carrying a tremendous amount of goodwill for the MCU after No Way Home turned out to be such a winner, plus the threequel even ended on a first-look trailer at Doctor Strange 2, encouraging folks to think of it as the next chapter in the same story. Likewise, pitching NWH as a crossover event worked wonders, and the similarly thrilling, cameo-laden promotion for the upcoming magical blockbuster looks to be pulling off the same trick.
In many ways, Multiverse of Madness has an even wider scope than NWH as it’s not limited to the Spider-Verse and seems to be intent on crossing over with every corner of Marvel media, as shown by Patrick Stewart’s Professor X featuring in the trailer. Whether this will translate to the record-breaking ticket sales of Spider-Man, we’ll have to see, but Cumberbatch’s foretelling of the future may prove to be accurate.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness hits cinemas on May 6.