Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness: Illuminati Explained

The following article contains spoilers for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.Among all the cameos, easter eggs, and fan-dedicated moments in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, few things were more mind-blowing as the introduction of the Illuminati, a secret society that rules Earth-383 from the shadows. Inspired by the Marvel Comics group of the same name, Earth-383 Illuminati features the universe's most powerful heroes, banding together to make the tough decisions regular people don’t even know.

Since we are deep into the multiverse of madness, the Earth-383 Illuminati brings a couple of familiar faces in unexpected ways. For instance, in the timeline of Earth-383 Karl Mordo (Chiwetel Ejiofor) became the Sorcerer Supreme, while Maria Rambeau (Lashana Lynch) gained the powers of Captain Marvel, instead of Carol Danvers (Brie Larson). Even more exciting is seeing Hayley Atwell’s Peggy Carter taking over the vibranium shield to become Captain Carter. The other members of the Illuminati pay homage to Marvel's previous endeavors and tease what might be to come in the future of the MCU. We have Patrick Stewart returning as the leader of the X-Men, Charles Xavier aka Professor X, and Anson Mount returning to the role of the Inhuman king, Black Bolt. Lastly, Marvel Studios heard the crowd and turned John Krasinski’s Reed Richards fan-casting into a reality.

But who are the Illuminati members in Earth-838? And how did the secret group get together? Finally, most important than all, how each character connects to the bigger picture of the MCU? With Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness approaching its Disney+ release, it’s time we discuss what it all means.

Stephen Strange 838, the Illuminati Founder

doctor-strange-2-benedict-cumberbatch-illuminati — Image via Marvel Studios

As Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness reveals, Earth-838’s Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) gathered the Illuminati together to make tough decisions the majority of people are not ready to face. While it’s unclear exactly when Stephen created the Illuminati, the group was already active by the time Thanos (Josh Brolin) went after the Infinity Stones to move on with his genocidal plan. Just as Stephen from Earth-616 was willing to let Thanos kill half the universe’s life to ensure the Avengers would win in the end, in Earth-838, Stephen’s pragmatical thinking led him to convince his most powerful allies to start making decisions in the shadows.

Stephen from Earth-838 used the Darkhold to search for ways to defeat Thanos in multiple realities. His goal was to wander the Multiverse looking for powerful weapons that could prevent the villain from snapping the Infinity Gauntlet. Stephen indeed found a weapon capable of killing Thanos, the legendary Book of Vishanti. However, the cost was the destruction of an entire reality. While wandering the Multiverse, people risk making different realities clash, which might lead to the destruction of one of them or both. So, to prevent Earth-838 from ever disappearing just because Stephen was reckless and arrogant, the Illuminati decided to kill their Doctor Strange. Stephen from Earth-838 fully supported this decision, warning his teammates that other versions of himself could one day cross the barriers between universes and put everyone in danger.

The Illuminati hid the truth about Stephen's demise, pretending the Master of the Mystic Arts died at the hands of Thanos and was the savior of the universe, which, to some extent, he was. That’s one clever solution that allows the Illuminati to keep acting in secrecy while creating a martyr that would unite the whole world and usher in an era of prosperity. For the fans of the MCU, Earth-838 of Stephen also allows us to reflect on the character's complex morality. As Cumberbatch has previously told Collider, the sequel “is about examining that and finding his flaws, his faults and his humanity, as well as his strengths and renewing our understanding of him and deepening our understanding of him.”

Karl Mordo, Sorcerer Supreme

Still of Baron Mordo from Multiverse of Madness

Taking the place of Stephen Strange as Earth-838 Sorcerer Supreme and member of the Illuminati is Ejiofor’s Karl Mordo. In this alternate reality, Mordo never became a villain determined to destroy all the wizards in the world. Instead, Mordo and Stephen kept their close relationship until Doctor Strange started to use the Darkhold and caused trillions of lives to disappear. Mordo represents the magic wielders in the Illuminati, helping to decide what to do about mystical menaces that threaten reality. No word on whether Earth-838 Wong (Benedict Wong) stuck around the Sanctum like he did in Earth-616.

Curious enough, when Stephen from Earth-616 meets the Mordo variant, he reveals that he fought him before as a villain. As Stephen explains it, the Mordo from Earth-616 became determined to destroy all wizards and tried to kill the Sorcerer Supreme. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to see the duel between Mordo and Stephen in the MCU. But with Disney+ expanding its slate of Marvel TV shows, there’s plenty of space to fill with more magic-wielders fighting each other. Hear me out, Marvel, you are sitting on a goldmine!

Charles Xavier, AKA Professor X from the X-Men

doctor-strange-2-professor-x-patrick-stewart — Image via Marvel

One of the most prominent members of Earth-838’s Illuminati is Professor X, the telepath Mutant who’s the leader of the X-Men. Although the movie does not mention either the X-Men nor mutants by name, we've suspected for a while that the MCU is leading up to incorporating the X-Men stories into their Phases. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness brings back Patrick Stewart for the role of Professor X after the star played the Mutant leader in Fox’s pre-MCU X-Men film franchise. Stewart first showed up as Charles Xavier in 2000’s Xavier in X-Men (2000), retiring from the character in 2017’s critically-acclaimed Logan. However, the Illuminati version of Professor X might not come from the Fox X-Men franchise.

The Earth-838 version of Professor X uses a golden futuristic wheelchair just like the one featured in the 90s’ animated series focused on the Mutants. The design connection could have something to do with X-Men ‘97, a revival for the animated series coming to Disney+ in mid-2023. So, the chances are that Earth-383’s Professor X is from a reality close to the one depicted in the animated series, and maybe the Disney+ revival will be directly connected to the events of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. With Kevin Feige teasing that it won't be long before we get information on what is to come for Phase 5 and having recently gone on a retreat to plan out that next decade of the MCU, it shouldn’t take long for us to know how the Mutants will fit with everything else. But don't be surprised if Stewart is not making a return since it will be likely that Xavier will be recast for the MCU.

Captain Carter, the First Avenger

doctor-strange-2-captain-carter — Image via Marvel Studios

Hayley Atwell's role as Peggy Carter remains a fan-favorite casting in the MCU. She first showed up in Captain America: The First Avenger before expanding her story in the solo series Agent Carter. Besides helping Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) fight Hydra during World War II, Peggy is also a founder of S.H.I.E.L.D., making her one of the most influential characters in the entire MCU.

In Earth-838, Peggy Carter takes the super serum in place of Steve, becoming herself the First Avenger. As Captain Carter, Peggy uses a vibranium shield to fight bad guys. And just like Steve, Earth-838’s Peggy seems to have remained frozen in time for a few decades before becoming one of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. The Captain Carter variant became a fan-favorite character after she showed up in the MCU animated series What If…? However, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness doesn’t confirm if the Earth-838 version of Captain Carter is the same we see in the animated series. We hope not, given that the Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) obliterated the Illuminati, cutting Captain Carter in half with her own shield. But, the moment is ripe to revive the Agent Carter series, which got criminally canceled after only two seasons.

Maria Rambeau, Captain Marvel

captain-marvel-lashana-lynch — Image via Marvel

Just as Peggy Carter is the First Avenger of Earth-838, a different person took over the mantle (and powers) of Captain Marvel. While Earth-616’s Carol Danvers became Captain Marvel, her best friend, Maria Rambeau, becomes the cosmic powerhouse in the alternate universe. In Earth-838, Maria has all the same powers Carol displays in Earth-616, which leads us to believe it was Maria, and not Carol, who got involved with the explosion of the Kree ship and overcharged with the power on the Space Stone. Curiously enough, in Earth-616, Maria’s daughter, Monica (Teyonah Parris), just got her MCU superpowers as part of the events of WandaVision. Monica will appear next in The Marvels, together with Larson’s Carol Danvers and Iman Vellani’s Ms. Marvel. Might we also see Lynch reprise her role in some kind of way either through flashbacks or perhaps multiverse hijinks? Time will tell!

Blackagar Bolt, AKA Black Bolt from the Inhumans

inhumans-anson-mount-black-bolt — Image via ABC

No one was ever expecting to see Anson Mount replay his role of Blackagar Boltagon, king of Inhumans. Mainly known as Black Bolt, the hero is part of an altered superpowered human species that live on the dark side of the moon, in a glorious city called Attilan. Black Bolt is one of the most powerful beings in the Marvel Universe, capable of shattering an entire building with just a whisper. That’s why Black Bolt usually keeps to himself and remains silent.

Mount has previously played Black Bolt in ABC’s failed series Inhumans, released in 2017. At the time, the idea was to introduce the Inhumans and make them cross over with the rest of the MCU, but the series bombed so hard that Disney thought it best to pretend it didn’t exist. The series Marvel's Agents of SHIELD similarly introduced Inhumans of their own and included the involvement of terrigen mists which are what are used to "activate" an Inhuman's powers. It's a shame to wipe all that away. For everything that Inhumans did wrong, it also introduced a great cast of characters. So, with the Multiverse being canon, we can pretend the failed series happened in another timeline and just bring the beloved characters for a new story. Mount’s reintroduction as a member of the Illuminati is intriguing since the series never had a big enough fanbase to justify his cameo. However, since the MCU is getting ready to bring the Mutants into the folder, the appearance of Mount might also be teasing that a new iteration of the Inhumans will also show up in Earth-616.

Reed Richards from the Fantastic Four

For a long time, fans of the MCU had wished John Krasinski would take the mantle of Reed Richards, the leader of the Fantastic Four. Well, it happened! Even if only for a cameo, Krasinski is currently the only official Reed Richards in the MCU. How likely Krasinski will remain as Earth-616's version of Reed Richards is up for debate, though we will get a clearer picture once the upcoming Fantastic Four film gets back on track.

Besides Reed, the Fantastic Four is also composed initially of the Thing/Ben Grimm, the Invisible Woman/Susan Storm Richards, and the Human Torch/Jonnhy Storm. After Reed marries Susan, the couple also has two superpowered children, Franklin and Valeria. That’s worth mentioning because the Earth-838 version of Reed Richards tells Wanda that he’s married and a father. So, if Earth-838 can have the whole Fantastic Four family, we can only hope the same happens in Earth-616!

Unfortunately, we still don’t know when the Fantastic Four film is releasing. So far, Disney has saved the date for multiple unannounced MCU projects on November 3, 2023, as well as February 16, May 3, July 26, and November 8, 2024. Besides Fantastic Four, there’s a Shawn Levy-directed Deadpool 3, Oscar-winner Mahershala Ali-led Blade, Shang-Chi 2, and a Captain America sequel starring Anthony Mackie. We can only hope the Fantastic Four film finds a little window to be released in the next couple of years.