As one of the most important and influential producers in Hollywood, Kevin Feige has the clout to recruit almost anybody he wants to take the reins of a Marvel Cinematic Universe project, whether it be a feature film or Disney Plus streaming show.
The focus is usually on lesser-known talents who put their own stamp on the franchise’s standard formula, which gives each new effort a distinctive feel, and furthers the careers of the directors in question thanks to the global appeal of the brand. It’s a smart system that benefits both parties massively, but Marvel aren’t above hiring established top tier talents either, with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness‘ Sam Raimi one of the most notable.
Of course, The Evil Dead filmmaker only boarded the Sorcerer Supreme’s solo sequel when Scott Derrickson dropped out, but his visual and stylistic sensibilities feel tailor-made for what promises to be one of the most eye-popping and psychedelic entries in the superhero series to date.
In a new interview, Kevin Feige voiced his excitement and enthusiasm at working with Raimi again, 20 years after receiving just his second-ever film credit as an associate producer on 2002’s Spider-Man, before he was bumped up to executive producer status for the following two sequels.
“I spoke earlier about how everything we do in Marvel Studios is from the point of view of the audience, how do we make the audience feel one way or how do we evoke an emotion out of an audience? I really feel like I learned that from watching Sam Raimi on the Spider-Man movies, where I was just very lucky to be there working for the former head of Marvel Studios, Avi Arad, and just watching. Watching Avi, watching Laura Ziskin, the producer of that, watching Amy Pascal, who ran the studio at the time, and particularly Sam Raimi put those movies together.
Now being in a position that Sam is back in the Marvel Universe and working for us on Doctor Strange, which, aside from Spider-Man, both Steve Ditko co-creations, was one of his favorite characters, is really quite remarkable and full-circle for me personally from my journey at Marvel.But really, it’s just exciting to get to watch Sam work again and to see Sam Raimi put his Sam Raimi stamp on Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. And for people who know what that stamp is, they can be very excited. And for people who don’t yet know what that stamp is, I can’t wait for them to see this movie, be blown away by it and go, ‘What else has he done?’, And delve into Sam Raimi’s filmography, which is one of the best of all time.”
We still haven’t seen any footage from Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness yet, but with Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Eternals and Spider-Man: Far From Home all coming to theaters before the end of the year, at least one of them will surely come burdened with a full-length trailer so we can finally see what Raimi is cooking up for his return to the comic book genre.
