Michael Waldron, writer of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, has talked about early plans to include Tom Cruise’s Iron Man in the Marvel sequel.
Amongst the various rumors that surrounded Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, by far the most persistent was that Tom Cruise would appear in the movie as a variant of Tony Stark, possibly the villainous Superior Iron Man. So insistent were fans on Cruise’s appearance in the movie that many even claimed a shot of Lashana Lynch’s Maria Rambeau/Captain Marvel variant in the film’s trailer was in fact an edited shot of Cruise’s Iron Man. Ultimately, of course, Cruise did not appear. But Michael Waldron has revealed the Mission: Impossible star was considered for the rumored role.
The rumors of Tom Cruise’s inclusion as a variant of Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark seem to have spawned from the fact that Cruise almost played Stark in Marvel Studios’ Iron Man, being considered for the role before Downey Jr. was cast. While trailers revealed Patrick Stewart would be reprising the role of Professor X, fans had wondered whether the film might also offer a look at a casting that could have been. Michael Waldron has confirmed this was the case, saying he wanted to include Cruise’s Iron Man in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness after remembering reading about plans to cast the actor in the role. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Waldron revealed:
“Yeah, that was totally made up. I mean, there’s no cut footage of Tom Cruise! But I love Tom Cruise, and I said to [Marvel Studios president] Kevin [Feige] at one point, I was like, Could we get Tom Cruise’s Iron Man? I remember reading about that in Ain’t It Cool News back in the day, that Tom Cruise was going to be Iron Man.”
While Tom Cruise’s Iron Man never came to fruition in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness – Waldron cites issues with Cruises availabilty, as “he was shooting Mission Impossible 7 and 8″ – this story shows that the writers at Marvel are just as much a part of the fan environment as the audiences and are excited by the same ideas. Even without Cruise’s Iron Man making it into the Doctor Strange sequel, the film still managed to deliver plenty of crowd-pleasing cameos and surprises.
Here is the synopsis for the Marvel Studios film:
The MCU unlocks the Multiverse and pushes its boundaries further than ever before. Journey into the unknown with Doctor Strange, who, with the help of mystical allies both old and new, traverses the mind-bending and dangerous alternate realities of the Multiverse to confront a mysterious new adversary.
Directed by Sam Raimi from a script written by Michael Waldron, the film stars Benedict Cumberbatch, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Elizabeth Olsen, Benedict Wong, Xochitl Gomez, with Michael Stuhlbarg, Rachel McAdams, and Patrick Stewart.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is in theaters now. Stay tuned for all the latest news on the MCU film and Elizabeth Olsen’s Marvel future, and be sure to subscribe to Heroic Hollywood’s YouTube channel for more original video content.
Source: Rolling Stone
