The gates of the multiverse are about to be opened wide – Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness hits theaters on May 6th. Since his film debut in Doctor Strange back in 2016, Doctor Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) has been a key member in protecting reality in the MCU, from interdimensional beings to the Mad Titan himself. The sequel is also set to bring Elizabeth Olsen’s Wanda Maximoff, the Scarlet Witch, back to the big screen after the events of WandaVision. Before these two powerful Avengers face a new multiversal threat, here is your watchlist of movies and series of their stories so far, to prepare you for their return:
Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
Avengers: Age of Ultron is where we first meet Wanda Maximoff and her brother Pietro (Aaron-Taylor Johnson), twins that were experimented on with the Mind Stone, from the Infinity Stone. Her abilities include telekinesis, energy manipulation, and telepathy. The Maximoff twins team up with Ultron with the intent to tear the Avengers apart. Though her allegiance changes over the course of the movie, Wanda has a sinister side, something that’s teased will emerge again in the Doctor Strange sequel. However, there’s more to the newest Avenger that gets explored in later appearances. What’s clear from Avengers: Age of Ultron is that, from the beginning, Wanda is very loyal and protective of her family; if you mess with her family, be prepared to feel her wrath!
Doctor Strange (2016)
After a name-drop in Captain America: The Winter Soldier, audiences finally get to meet Dr. Stephen Strange, an arrogant neurosurgeon who loses function in his hands and seeks a cure through the study of the mystic arts. Under the guidance of the Ancient One (Tilda Swinton) and Mordo (Chiwetel Ejiofor), he becomes a master sorcerer proficient enough to defend the New York Sanctum on its own and later defeat Dormammu, an interdimensional entity voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch.
Not only do audiences get their first taste of the multiverse, Doctor Strange explores who Strange is and what he is capable of as the future Sorcerer Supreme. Strange’s flexibility to bend the rules in order to do what’s right has allowed him to be successful as a master of the mystic arts as well as a neurosurgeon. This is something Mordo is unable to bend to; before he renounces being a sorcerer, he offers a warning to Strange– the bill comes due and there will be a price to pay for his actions. When all is said and done, how long will it be before Doctor Strange has to pay the hefty tab?
Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
Doctor Strange makes his Avengers debut after the Hulk crash lands in the Sanctum Sanctorum, warning him and Wong (Benedict Wong) that Thanos (Josh Brolin) is on the way. As the keeper of the Time Stone, he’s kidnapped by Ebony Maw (Tom Vaughan-Lawlor) and later saved by Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) and Peter Parker (Tom Holland). Though Strange and Stark’s egos clash, Strange has grown into the power and responsibility as Sorcerer Supreme; he even holds his own against Thanos, who had four Infinity Stones. However, he’s still cavalier enough to make risky bets on behalf of the universe. For instance, Strange is convinced by Stark to fight Thanos on Titan, but Strange warns him that he will do whatever it takes to protect their reality. He also breaks natural law by looking forward in time to see all the outcomes where they win, not to mention that he gambles the fate of the universe by handing over the Time Stone to Thanos.
Back on Earth, Wanda and Vision (Paul Bettany) are romantically involved and attacked during one of their rendezvous. Though Vision is willing to sacrifice his life in order to prevent Thanos from retrieving the Mind Stone, Wanda is not. Unfortunately, time is not on their side when Thanos arrives in Wakanda and Vision pleads with Wanda to kill him. Though she’s successful, Thanos reverses time to pluck the Mind Stone out of Vision’s head, making Wanda watch Vision die twice. When she begins to turn to dust, she’s the only one who seems to welcome it, taking her away from her grief.
Avengers: Endgame (2019)
After the Hulk’s snap is successful, Strange gathers all the fallen Avengers and heroes across the galaxy through portals for the most epic Avengers Assemble moment. During the final battle, Tony asks Strange if this was the one shot they had to beat Thanos. Initially, Strange tells him he can’t say, but when the tide turns, he signals to him and confirms this is it. Once again, Strange breaks the rules in order to save their reality, which worked since Tony snaps Thanos and his army out of existence at the cost of his life.
Wanda fights Thanos in the final battle, enraged at him for killing Vision before her eyes. In her vengeance, she nearly takes him out on her own. When the battle is over and peace is restored, she’s the only Avenger left alone. She’s lost her family, her brother, and now the love of her life. When she talks to Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner) after Tony’s funeral, it appears she is starting to accept Vision’s death, but there’s more pain underneath that she’s not ready to face.
WandaVision (2021)
After years of loss and triggered by her grief, Wanda takes a town in New Jersey hostage and lives out her sitcom fantasy with Vision, where the two strongest Avengers create their own little family with their twin children. The Emmy-nominated series delves into Wanda’s backstory, using Agatha Harkness (Kathryn Hahn) to push her to face her real history with chaos magic. Her previous experimentation with the Mind Stone only unlocked what was already there. Wanda Maximoff embraces her identity as the Scarlet Witch, a mythical being more powerful than the Sorcerer Supreme and prophesied to destroy the world.
WandaVision ends with letting the town free at the cost of losing Vision and her sons. She chooses to isolate herself as she learns more about the mystic arts, the same way Doctor Strange did during his time at Kamar-Taj. As she continues to read the Darkhold, she hears her children call out to her. In one of the Doctor Strange 2 trailers, she has visions of her sons in their Westview home, and she seems determined to find Billy (Julian Hilliard) and Tommy (Jett Klyne). Wanda has been called a villain before and was willing to take a town hostage to be with Vision again. What kind of damage could she cause in order to reunite with her sons?
What If…? (2021)
If you don’t have time to watch the entire animated series over, Episode 4, “What If… Doctor Strange Lost His Heart Instead of His Hands?” is a must-watch. In this alternate reality, Strange’s motivation for learning the mystic arts is due to Christine Palmer (Rachel McAdams) dying in a car accident and trying to bring her back to life. His obsession and refusal to accept her death as an absolute point drives him to absorb power from interdimensional beings, like the creature seen in the Doctor Strange 2 trailer and throughout the What If...? series.
Where Doctor Strange lacked the emotional pull between Stephen and Christine, this episode highlights how much of an impact they have on each other, even when they aren’t together. In one of the Doctor Strange 2 trailers, it’s suggested that Strange attends Christine’s wedding to another man. At the end of this particular episode Strange watches Christine disappear in his arms after he tore apart his reality as Strange Supreme, leaving him alone with his own grief. In this reality he is one of the most powerful beings, powerful enough to see and hear The Watcher (Jeffrey Wright), and is one of the variant versions that will face our Doctor Strange in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Bonus: if you have more time, do watch Episode 5 “What If… Zombies?!” because Zombie Wanda and Zombie Strange are seen in the Doctor Strange sequel trailer.
Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)
After his identity is outed by Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal), Peter Parker attempts to get his life back by asking Doctor Strange to cast a spell where the world would forget he’s Spider-Man. Against Wong’s warning, Strange casts the spell for the teenager, but Peter continues to mess with the spell, and every person who knows that Peter is Spider-Man starts to enter their reality, thus opening up the multiverse and tearing their reality apart. He’s able to save their reality later by casting the original spell, making everyone in Peter’s life, including Strange himself, forget about him.
Once again, Strange has broken natural law – first to help Peter and then when he reverses the damage; yet he’s routinely praised for it unlike Wanda. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness takes place directly after Spider-Man: No Way Home and will tackle the consequences of his interference. As Mordo warned in the past, there is a high price to pay when he breaks the rules, and now it’s time to pay that bill on a multiversal level.