Marvel Eyeing Directors for 'Doctor Strange'

While Marvel Studios hasn't officially announced a Doctor Strange movie, it's been long assumed that the character will make his big-screen debut during Phase Three of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Working off that line of thinking, it makes sense that the rumor mill surrounding Doctor Strange is picking up. During January, there were reports that the studio had talked about the lead role with both Johnny Depp and Jon Hamm. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Marvel has now begun the process of locking in a director.

THR reported on Thursday that Marvel was meeting with a handful of directors, including Brave's Mark Andrews, A Royal Affair's Nikolaj Arcel, Welcome to Yesterday's Dean Israelite, and 50/50 and Warm Bodies' Jonathan Levine. According to THR, "Marvel is looking to hire both a writer and a filmmaker to work in tandem, or a filmmaker who can do both tasks as it focuses on the hero first created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko in the pages of 1963's Strange Tales No. 110."

Interestingly enough, the THR article closes by saying, "One of the challenges facing the company is making the supernatural elements mesh in a convincing way with the hi-tech and grounded elements established in movies such as Iron Man and The Avengers." The article fails to recognize the fact that there has already been two Thor movies, both of which established that magic and science are the same thing in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. On top of that, The Avengers: Age of Ultron will also feature Elizabeth Olsen as the Scarlet Witch, who's, well, a witch. Magic? Check.