It’s rumor time!  As Marvel Studios launches further into “Phase Two” of their film slate, we’re likely to be vetting quite a few rumors over the next few years.  While most of these turn out to be false (look over the long road to The Avengers), a few here and there are solid.  A rather tantalizing rumor has now surfaced with regards to director Alan Taylor’s (Game of Thrones) sequel Thor: The Dark World, and we figured it was worth sharing.

Production on that film is currently underway in London and we already know that Christopher Eccleston is onboard as villain Malekith the Accursed, but now murmurs are making their way around the interwebs that Thor: The Dark World could also see an appearance from another major Marvel character: Dr. Strange.  Hit the jump for more.

A Twitter account by the name of Roger Wardell, who has previously leaked information about Falcon appearing in Captain America 2 and Sebastian Stan returning as Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier well in advance of official word, has recently dropped two tidbits that lead to this Dr. Strange rumor:

“Inside News: There’s something “Strange” about Thor: The Dark World”

“Inside News: Marvel is negotiations with Viggo Mortensen for an unspecified role in one of their Phase 2 films”

The folks over at Screen Rant connected the dots and proposed that Mortensen may in fact be the actor that Marvel is lining up for the Dr. Strange role, with further speculation via The Playlist.  The studio has been developing an independent Dr. Strange feature for a few years, with Thomas Donnelly and Joshua Oppenheimer tapped to write the script back in the summer of 2010.  Though Marvel has a full slate of films leading up to the 2015 release of The Avengers 2, it would certainly make sense to introduce the Dr. Strange character in one of these Phase Two films before he gets his own movie in the inevitable Phase Three.

Marvel is letting their space flag fly with Guardians of the Galaxy and early word is that Thor: The Dark World will spend less time on Earth than the first film, so it wouldn’t be a shock to see the mystical Dr. Strange character to come to the forefront sooner or later.

It’s important to remember that neither Dr. Strange’s appearance nor Mortensen’s involvement have been confirmed, so it’s entirely possible that one or both of these rumors may not pan out.  For now we’ll just have to wait and see what the coming months bring us, but I’m sure we won’t be short of other Marvel rumors in the meantime.