Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madnessis about to release in less than two weeks and is waiting to crack open the threat of conjunct alternate realities upon theMarvel Cinematic Universe. The show has connections to the Disney+ seriesWandaVisionand the filmSpider-Man: No Way Home. However, there are still doubts about thefilm’s relationship to the seriesLoki. Though Feige had earlier claimed that the two entries would connect, the Marvel boss has kept quiet on the matter since then. However, one thread is linking the two MCU entries together despite all the quietness, and that is writer Michael Waldron.
Waldron was the first choice of the studio to penMultiverse of MadnessafterSam Raimi took over the projectas the director. Waldron had earlier pennedLokifor Marvel and Disney+, which went on to receive the best opening for a Marvel Studios television show. With Waldron involved in both the projects, there are assumptions that the two MCU entries will definitely somehow connect and that Tom Hiddleston possibly makes a cameo appearance in the film.
While nothing is concrete in that regard, Waldron recently spoke toThe Playlistabout how his stories share space in the vast MCU timeline and how they also exist as stand-alone events.
The headaches I have are probably intertwined. I mean, it’s all intertwined, and it all stands alone. Like a great comic universe, I think that one thing certainly informs the other. You’re going to have a better time watching the next chapter of an MCU story if you’ve seen the stuff before it. But also, hopefully, even if you’ve never, if you’ve walked in off the street, you’ll still have a blast. It should be good enough that it stands on its own.
Waldron’s notion about the connectivity betweenLokiandMultiverse of Madnessremains ambiguous. Though he’s right about the fact that each MCU project has its own approach and its own setting, MCU has reached a point where the link between the projects can’t be ignored. And sinceLokiandMultiverse of Madnesstake upon a similar subject, they will undoubtedly be intertwined in one way or another, but the connection between the two may not be explored in more than a reference.
Is Marvel being Secretive of the Connection betweenLokiandDoctor Strange 2?
WhileMultiverse of Madness, as the title suggest, will dive into the concept of co-existing alternate realities as we first saw inWhat If…?, Lokigave us a glimpse at a probable cause of these branched realities spinning from the sacred timeline, which eventually will lead to the multiverse. Furthermore,Spider-Man: No Way Homealready explored how multiversal openings can cause chaos in the timeline, leading Strange into big-time trouble. Hence,Multiverse of Madnessis the entry thatfans are looking forward to having their answersfrom.
Though Feige has maintained silence on the film’s connection, Marvel maintains secrecy onMultiverse of Madness, resorting to not having press screenings of the film to avoid spoilers from the plot from leaking on the Internet. So, it wouldn’t be a surprise if fan theories aboutLokiandDoctor Strange 2establishing a connection come true, which may then connect in more detail inAnt-Man and The Wasp: Quantumaniaand set upLoki Season 2.
Story and plot pointsfromDoctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madnessis an entry that shall anchor the MCU into a vastly spread out future, with several characters and stories from other films based on Marvel characters (outside the MCU) possiblycrossing over or at least be referenced in it. Waldron may be ambiguous in answering questions about this anticipated assumption concerningLokiandMultiverse of Madness, but I, for one, won’t rule out the possibilities of the two entries “intertwining while standing alone.”
