Why Doctor Strange Is Not An Avenger, According to Benedict Cumberbatch

Benedict Cumberbatch explains why Doctor Strange isn’t an Avenger. MCU’s primary sorcerer will soon return on the big screen with his second solo film, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Directed by Sam Raimi, the sequel’s events are caused by Strange’s involvement in Peter Parker’s (Tom Holland) issues in Spider-Man: No Way Home. Before that, however, the wizard was also instrumental in defeating Thanos (Josh Brolin). Despite that, he’s apparently, not an official member of The Avengers.

Stephen Strange was introduced in the final stretch of the Infinity Saga. His arrival in the MCU officially opened the mystical pocket of the universe that’s being further explored in Phase 4 with Wanda Maximoff’s (Elizabeth Olsen) journey in becoming the Scarlet Witch. Strange had been mostly operating separately from the bigger universe as part of the Masters of the Mystic Arts who silently protects Earth from interdimensional threats. But, when Thanos and his minions came after the Infinity Stones, he needed to team up with the Avengers and other active heroes in the franchise to defeat the villain.

Contrary to the assumption that Doctor Strange is now an Avenger, Cumberbatch says that he is not. Talking to KCRW while promoting his critically-acclaimed film, The Power of the Dog, the actor touched on the idea and explained why, technically, he isn’t, and it has something to do with his original mandate as a Master of Mystic Arts. Read his full comment below:

People say that you were in the Avengers, but you’re not an Avenger, right? No, I’m not. I’m not at Stark Tower with Nick Fury. No, he’s sort of outside of that realm, but I don’t think that’s necessarily a character trait. I think that is just a job title. He’s there to protect the reality of the Avengers in a different way to what they have been fighting up until the point that everything collides in the last two Avengers movies, so he holds his position as an adult on the periphery of that, but I think only for so long. There’s always a moment where he has to work with people and team up. And you know, we might see that in the next film; you have to wait and see.

Cumberbatch’s reasoning for why Strange isn’t an Avenger makes sense. His role as a prominent member of the Masters of the Mystic Arts is already big of a task, and as the multiverse continues to collapse, he needs to focus on that. What’s curious is why Wong (Benedict Wong) is seemingly in consistent communication with other deemed Avengers such as Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) and Captain Marvel (Brie Larson)? As seen in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings’ post-credits scene, the current Sorcerer Supreme is the one maintaining ties with other MCU heroes which they should probably do a much better job with considering Thanos’ Avengers: Infinity War win.

Strange has been a popular choice to be one of the leaders of the new Avengers moving forward. With Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), and Captain America (Chris Evans) no longer in the MCU, Earth’s Mightiest Heroes is due for a revamp. Doctor Strange being one of the most powerful heroes in the franchise, not to mention his similarities with Tony Stark gave fans the assumption that he’s primed to take on a leadership role in Marvel Studios’ premiere superhero team. But, if he isn’t an Avenger, then that isn’t possible.

Source: KCRW

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