Benedict Cumberbatch's Recent Doctor Strange Comments Set Up A Perfect Chance To Answer A Major 3-Year-Old MCU Mystery In Avengers: Secret Wars (2025)

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness left audiences with many questions, but answers could be coming in Avengers: Secret Wars based on Benedict Cumberbatch's recent MCU comments. Doctor Strange's future is still uncertain after his 2022 sequel, and it's natural to wonder when he will appear next. Currently, Doctor Strange 3 hasn't been officially given the green light, but there are two upcoming Avengers movies where he was originally thought to appear.

However, in a recent interview with Variety, Cumberbatch said Stephen Strange's MCU journey remains wide open, despite initially saying he'd be absent from the Avengers: Doomsday cast (a comment he has now walked back):

They are very open to discussing where we go next. Who do you want to write and direct the next one? What part of the comic lore do you want to explore so that Strange can keep evolving? He’s a very rich character to play. He’s a complex, contradictory, troubled human who’s got these extraordinary abilities, so there’s potent stuff to mess about with.

Putting the Doomsday confusion aside, crucially, the British actor did reveal that Doctor Strange is "in a lot" of Avengers: Secret Wars. Secret Wars is still two years away, but his comments suggest the Sorcerer Supreme could play a significant role in the film's events. Hopefully, this means Marvel will finally answer who Charlize Theron's Clea is and where she took Doctor Strange at the end of Multiverse of Madness.

Charlize Theron Deserves To Expand Her MCU role

Multiverse of Madness ends with Doctor Strange developing a third eye on his forehead. However, that wasn't the most surprising part of the film's ending. In the first Multiverse of Madness post-credit scene, Clea abruptly encounters Strange and informs him that he caused an incursion, and needs to come with her to fix it. She uses a magical dagger to open a portal to the Dark Dimension and the duo prepare to step through before the screen cuts to black.

Clea is a deep cut in Marvel Comics lore, but audiences were excited to see Theron join the MCU. She's a superstar who has appeared in many notable franchises, like The Fast and the Furious and Mad Max. Since Doctor Strange was last seen with her, it would make sense that Theron returns with Cumberbatch the next time he appears in the MCU. Previously, that was thought to be Avengers: Doomsday, but now looks to be in Secret Wars.

The two characters have a complicated relationship in the comics, at one point marrying. Then, during a comics run where Stephen Strange dies, Clea becomes the Sorceress Supreme, which means there's quite a lot Marvel can do with the character, and considering they've cast an actor with great talent like Theron, the MCU should want to bring her back as soon as possible. Secret Wars is a perfect opportunity to develop Clea before she presumably returns in Doctor Strange 3.

Clea Could Have A Significant Role In Secret Wars

Clea May Know More About The Multiverse Than Anyone Else

In Marvel Comics, Clea is the niece of Dormammu, the ruler of the Dark Dimension who Stephen banished from Earth in Doctor Strange. She possesses similar abilities to Doctor Strange and her relationship with him has changed throughout the comics. She is a student, friend, and romantic interest who has succeeded him as Sorcerer Supreme. She's also the daughter of Umar, who is a frequent antagonist to Doctor Strange in the comics.

It's unknown what her biography is in the MCU, but her brief appearance suggests she is an experienced person who possesses an understanding of the multiverse that many others don't. She knows what incursions are, and is well aware of Doctor Strange's actions in Multiverse of Madness. Her knowledge of the multiverse could be key to helping the Avengers fix it in Secret Wars, especially if the incursion is what leads to Robert Downey Jr's Doctor Doom entering Earth-616. It's also helpful for the Avengers to have another powerful sorcerer, especially one who can draw energy from the Dark Dimension.

Marvel Needs To Start Addressing Post-Credit Scenes From Phase 4 Movies

Marvel Has Introduced Too Many Storylines With No Follow-Up

Clea's introduction was one of many post-credit teases from Phase 4 that haven't been addressed. Marvel hasn't indicated when Clea could return, and it's the same for several characters from other post-credit scenes. Audiences are still waiting to hear how Harry Styles' Starfox from Eternals will factor into the MCU and when the eventual duel between Thor and Brett Goldstein's Hercules will happen after Thor: Love and Thunder.

There is also the mystery of the Ten Rings, which still hasn't been revealed after Wong, Captain Marvel, and Hulk failed to discover where the rings are reaching out to. Doctor Strange's return in Avengers: Secret Wars allows Marvel to follow through on Clea's appearance, addressing at least one of the many unanswered Phase 4 post-credit scenes. Hopefully, Marvel has plans for the other characters whose futures have only been teased.

Success!

Avengers: Secret Wars

Not Yet Rated

Superhero

Action Adventure

Release Date

May 7, 2027

Writers

Michael Waldron

Prequel(s)

Avengers: Doomsday

Franchise(s)

Marvel Cinematic Universe

Cast

See All

• 

  Kathryn Newton

• 

  Jonathan Majors

• 

  Mark Ruffalo

• 

  Benedict Wong

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