Benedict Cumberbatch’s new Doctor Strange 3 comments have me very excited, especially when it comes to the Dark Dimension. A location that has barely been explored despite debuting in his first movie, it was teased at the end of Doctor Strange 2 that the тιтular sorcerer’s next adventure will predominantly be set in the realm ruled by the powerful enтιтy known as Dormammu. As such, Cumberbatch’s new MCU comments have me pretty hyped about what’s likely in the works.

In 2016’s Doctor Strange, Mads Mikkelsen’s Kaecilius led a group of like-minded followers seeking to merge Earth with the Dark Dimension in the hopes of giving mankind eternal life. However, Kaecilius was defeated by Doctor Strange who bargained with Dormammu himself, promising to break the time loop he’d trapped Dormammu in if he agreed to spare Earth and banish Kacilius and his followers in the Dark Dimension. Now, Cumberbatch’s teases about Doctor Strange 3 have me very excited that we’ll finally get to see more of the Dark Dimension (perhaps even setting up the events of Avengers: Secret Wars too).

Doctor Strange 2’s Post-Credits Scene Was Crucial For His MCU Future

Meeting Clea and Working To Prevent An Incursion

After saving America Chavez and the Scarlet Witch’s defeat at the end of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Doctor Strange gains his third eye. In the comics, Doctor Strange’s third eye represents a magically heightened consciousness, allowing Strange to see into the souls of others and see through illusions, the original Eye of Agamotto. However, the third eye in the MCU looks to be connected to Doctor Strange’s use of magic with the Darkhold. However, Doctor Strange 2’s post-credits scene suggests there was an even greater consequence thanks to the subsequent debut of Charlize Theron’s Clea.

In the comics, Clea is the Sorcerer Supreme of the Dark Dimension, Dormmamu’s niece, and Doctor Strange’s wife. Coming to Earth and finding Doctor Strange at the end of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Clea claims that the Master of the Mystic Arts recently triggered a multiversal incursion in the Dark Dimension, and that he needed to come with her to help set things right. As such, the ᴀssumption is Doctor Strange 3 would largely cover this mission in the Dark Dimension, especially with incursions being the catalyst that leads to the end of the multiverse at the start of Marvel’s Secret Wars event in the comics.

Cumberbatch’s New Comments Tease The Dark Dimension Will Actually Be Explored

Doctor Strange 3 Could Be The Best Chapter Yet

During a recent interview with Variety, Benedict Cumberbatch confirmed the level of Doctor Strange’s involvement in the next Avengers movies, revealing that while he wouldn’t be in Avengers: Doomsday, Doctor Strange will have a central role in Avengers: Secret Wars. However, Cumberbatch also teased that development on Doctor Strange 3 was indeed happening:

“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.”

As a result, it does seem as though Doctor Strange’s future is bright, and that Doctor Strange 3 may very well be one of the few MCU movies that will be released between Doomsday and Secret Wars. Also, this hopefully means that the Dark Dimension teases won’t get dropped and that the alternate reality will finally be explored on a level that hasn’t been shown outside Strange’s brief visit during his bargaining with Dormammu. Furthermore, Strange and Clea investigating an incursion does feel like it could lead right into the Secret Wars, perhaps even serving as a sort of prelude to the final Multiverse Saga movie.

Doctor Strange 3 Could Be The Perfect Movie Between Avengers 5 & 6

Time Runs Out?

In the original comics, Secret Wars did have its own prelude event enтιтled Time Runs Out, a name some MCU fans have proposed as a perfect subтιтle for Doctor Strange 3 (especially if it’s released just ahead of Avengers: Secret Wars). In Time Runs Out, a collection of Marvel’s greatest heroes and villains (including Strange) desperately try to save their world from the same fate so many other Earths had already faced, having been destroyed due to the collision of realities known as incursions. Likewise, Time Runs Out directly leads to Doctor Strange having a key role in Secret Wars right alongside Doctor Doom.

The same could very well happen for the MCU’s Strange with an investigation beginning in the Dark Dimension. Perhaps the incursion will be just the start of a much larger crisis of cascading multiversal crises (as teased by Kang in Ant-Man 3), heralding the end of the multiverse just like in the Secret Wars comic. While currently conjecture, I am incredibly hyped and excited to see what Doctor Strange 3 will bring to the table, not only on its own with the Dark Dimension but also as a means to potentially set up what will likely be the MCU’s biggest crossover movie yet.

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