Doctor Strange in ‘WandaVision’? Why the anticipated cameo was cut

If “Agatha All Along” is still stuck in your head, we’ve got news for you. Evan Peters wasn’t the biggest cameo expected in MCU’s first Phase 4 show, WandaVision. Nope, a bigger MCU hero was supposed to swoop in and make us scream at our TVs in excitement. 

To our disappointments, we learned we were supposed to see Dr. Strange (the one & only Benedict Cumberbatch) teleport onto our screens during the Disney+ show. And he never materialized 😭😭😭

Why, Disney, WHY???? Did you think a crossover appearance from Bryan Singer’s X-Men franchise and a catchy song we’re still singing was good enough?! We want Benedict! We want Benedict! Or, at least, let us know why you decided to cut his cameo in WandaVision. 

Keep the star the star

In an interview with Rolling Stone, WandaVision creator Kevin Feige explained why they first considered throwing Dr. Strange into Wanda Maximoff’s imprisoned town – the one she turns into her own, personal sitcom. Maximoff’s story doesn’t end with her flying away before SHIELD or SWORD can swoop in and arrest her for holding an entire town full of innocent people in New Jersey hostage. 

Rather, it’s planned to continue in some way in Dr. Strange and the Multiverse of Madness. That’s why the good folks at Marvel were planning on bringing in Dr. Stephen Strange for a cameo before this season of WandaVision came to a close. 

Then, they realized it could be a mistake. “Some people might say, ‘Oh, it would’ve been so cool to see Dr. Strange,’ but it would have taken away from Wanda, which is what we didn’t want to do. We didn’t want the end of the show to be commoditized to go to the next movie — here’s the white guy, ‘Let me show you how power works.’” Feige explained to Rolling Stone. 

Accountability

Speaking of accountability, Kevin Feige also mentioned Wanda won’t get away from her crimes so easily. She may have flown away before being captured this time, but Karma, a superhero agency, or even Dr. Strange himself could bring her to justice in the Dr. Strange sequel or WandaVision season 2. 

Rolling Stone explained how poor Elizabeth Olsen (just the actress, not a writer) has had to push back against fan criticism regarding how her character just flew away without so much as a #canceled hashtag. 

“She had to get away before the people who have to hold her accountable got there”, Olsen explained. “And where she went is a place that no one could find her. Because she knows that she is going to be held accountable, and I think she has a tremendous amount of guilt.” 

Quick commercial break

Fun fact: if they allowed the glorious Benedict Cumberbatch to soar into WandaVision as Dr. Strange with his gorgeous cape and smoldering blue eyes, Feige revealed he’d be in a commercial break – like the Hydra cameo in the 50s commercial or the accurate take on every 90s commercial that gave you nightmares as a kid. 

Showrunner Joe Schaffer explained how Dr. Strange was going to use those WandaVision commercials to try and communicate with Wanda about her powers. Plus, Dr. Strange would’ve appeared in one of the ads. Thanks to the cape, we’re thinking he’d be Marvel’s version of Count Chocula. 

But wait, there’s more! This story is part of a bigger collection, an “oral history” of how WandaVision was createdAnd they want to cover every detail of how this show was made. Rolling Stone revealed this history will include interviews not only from Feige & Schaffer, but also from Paul Bettany, Kathryn Hahn, Teyonnah Parris, Randall Park, Kat Dennings, and more! 

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Do you think Dr. Strange appearing in WandaVision would’ve made the show better or made it lame? Let us know in the comments!