The writer of ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness‘ has hinted at a new love angle for Stephen Strange in the third MCU film. While Benedict Cumberbatch’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is breaking box office records, the Marvel Cinematic Universe film’s third instalment appears to be developing a storyline. The project’s creator disclosed how the current instalment’s plot has created doors for Stephen Strange’s future love affair in a recent interview with Deadline’s Hero Nation Podcast, via Comicbook.
During the conversation, the Marvel writer said that a new character from the comics, Clea, will be included in future instalments of the franchise. Waldron went on to say, “We always knew we wanted to introduce Clea, who in the comics is you could say the great love of Doctor Strange, but really in a lot of ways his formidable equal as a sorcerer herself.” He also disclosed, “Her backstory is fascinating, she’s the niece of Dormammu, the giant floating head from the first movie.”
Conversely, according to Waldron, introducing Clea could only eventuate once Strange’s plot was wrapped up with Rachel McAdams’ Christine Palmer, who played the sorcerous supreme’s principal love interest in the first film. He said, “They have a lot of great adventures in the comics, and we knew we wanted to introduce her, but it felt like we had to close the book to some extent on his love story with Christine Palmer, Rachel McAdams’ character.” For those unfamiliar with the comics, Clea eventually becomes Doctor Strange’s wife and the sorcerous supreme’s heir.
Waldron followed up by saying that Stephen is thinking about Christine’s advise to be open to the notion of loving someone after Clea arrives. According to rumours, Clea’s appearance has been teased for some time, with a post-credits scene revealing a possible romance between the two characters. Furthermore, the writer expressed his concerns about the Marvel multiverse narrative, saying, “The danger is you can expand your scope too wide, and you can actually reduce the stakes if you don’t make it personal as you go bigger and wider. But the opportunity in the multiverse is to have characters confront literal ‘What ifs?’ and alternate versions of themselves and perhaps others in their lives. It’s an interesting way to hold up a mirror to characters.”