Writer Michael Waldron has revealed that Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness‘s most shocking death was concocted – perhaps unsurprisingly – by director and horror legend Sam Raimi.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness shocked fans by introducing the Illuminati of Earth-838, before promptly killing them all off. Amongst the Illuminati’s ranks was a variant of Black Bolt, played by a returning Anson Mount, who previously played Earth-616’s Black Bolt in the MCU TV series Inhumans.
Anson Mount’s Black Bolt met his demise at the hands of Elizabeth Olsen’s Scarlet Witch, who removed his mouth, leaving his supersonic screams echoing around in his own skull until it was blown apart.
Sam Raimi’s Evil Head
In a recent interview with Empire, Michael Waldron revealed he turned to Sam Raimi for help when coming up with Black Bolt’s death in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
Waldron recalls wanting the first Illuminati death “to feel really horrific.” While discussing the moment in a Zoom meeting, the writer says it was Sam Raimi who decided upon taking away Black Bolt’s mouth as a way of killing him.
Michael Waldron revealed:
“I was at a point in the script where I was like, ‘S***, I don’t know what to do.’ We wanted the first death to feel really horrific. We were sitting on Zoom discussing how we kill Black Bolt, and somebody said his power is shooting ultra-powerful energy from his mouth. And I swear to God, without missing a beat, Sam goes, ‘What mouth?’ And Sam just painted the scene for us ‘…and then you just cut to him, Wanda’s just ripped his mouth closed, and he screams, and his head explodes.’ That’s master of horror Sam Raimi for you.”
The scene certainly succeeded in feeling horrific. Fans were left shocked by the sight of Black Bolt’s skull being blown open from the inside, its destroyed contents spilling into his mask as Wanda turned the Inhuman king’s power against him. Sam Raimi’s horror roots were definitely showing here.
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, Elizabeth Olsen, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Benedict Wong, Xochitl Gomez, Michael Stuhlbarg, and Rachel McAdams.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is now available to own on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray, Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital HD, and is also streaming exclusively on Disney+. Be sure to continue following Heroic Hollywood for all the latest news on the future of Doctor Strange and the Fantastic Four in the MCU, and subscribe to our YouTube channel for more original video content!
Source: Empire