‘Doctor Strange 2’ Writer On Why More X-Men Characters Weren’t Included

Here explains the exclusion of the X-Men.

Doctor Strange 2 X-Men

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness screenwriter Michael Waldron discussed why more X-Men characters weren’t included in the film.

One of the most-anticipated elements of Marvel Studios’ Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness was the inclusion of The Illuminati, which consists of numerous characters, some of which are variants of beloved Avengers, and others who are characters largely unseen from the current Marvel Cinematic Universe. In particular, the voice of one Patrick Stewart as Professor X of X-Men fame caught many fans’ attention from the trailers, and his role in the film led to some fan expectations and theories that we would be seeing more from the Mutants in the film, particularly to help expand the story for Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen).

However, is exciting as the opportunity to include the X-Men may sound for the Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness team, they opted not to include any more Mutants. Michael Waldron, who penned the script, explained to Entertainment Tonight:

“Yeah, we talked about House of M, and there’s plenty of examples of Wanda doing bad things throughout the comics in an effort to get her kids back. But ultimately this story didn’t need mutants to be powerful, I guess was our feeling. And, you know, wherever that lies on the timeline for the MCU, it didn’t feel like this was the right place to introduce it — because then it suddenly would have just been about mutants. And this is really a story about Wanda and her grief and her descent into darkness in this movie.”

Would the inclusion of more X-Men characters be necessary?

Some fans have criticized the use of certain Marvel characters in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, in particular, some have expressed disappointment in the film for how The Illuminati was used, and was underwhelmed that the film did not reach their sky high expectations in regards to fan-service moments akin to those seen in Avengers: Endgame and Spider-Man: No Way Home. Well, Michael Waldron makes a great point in the fact that at the end of the day, the film’s story didn’t need more of the X-Men characters to be powerful, especially since the story is ultimately centered on Wanda’s grief, and how it festered since the events in WandaVision.

Either way, whether it is based on what we saw from this version of Professor X we saw in the film, the X-Men are bound to appear in the MCU eventually. Here’s hoping that the introduction of the Mutants is worthwhile to the ongoing canon of the franchise.

Here is the synopsis for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness:

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 surrounding the film, as well as the future of the X-Men in the MCU, and be sure to subscribe to Heroic Hollywood’s YouTube channel for more original video content.

Source: ET Online

Noah Villaverde

Noah Villaverde

Cinema lover. Saxophone player. Coffee consumer. Chronic complainer. Oh, I also write. #TeamHeroic