Last week, a report emerged suggesting that Marvel Studios had identified four potential directors for the long-awaited Doctor Strange movie in Mark Andrews (Brave), Nikolaj Arcel (A Royal Affair), Dean Israelite (Welcome to Yesterday) and Jonathan Levine (Warm Bodies), seemingly indicating that the Sorcerer Supreme is set to join the Marvel Cinematic Universe as part of Phase Three. However, Marvel chief Kevin Feige has now dismissed the report during an interview with IGN, although he does admit that the studio is meeting with people about the movie:
“Well, that article was true that we’re meeting a lot of people now. That article was not true about who we’re meeting or what level anybody is. But we’re actively looking. Of course, of course. We always look at a wide range of people with a wide range of backgrounds. There’s only one criteria: do something that we think is really cool. [Laughs] That’s about it.”
Feige then went on to debunk the rumours about Johnny Depp being lined up for the role of Stephen Strange: “No, no. When you have a project that’s been around as long as Doctor Strange, there is sometimes, ‘Oh, I’ve met with Stan about this! Or I did that!’ So Strange is one of those projects that predates me by a long shot. Obviously, the character does, but even in its cinematic brewing. So there’s a lot of things that have happened before me, and I’ve been here 14 years. So that’s a long time ago. I don’t know if that happened then.”
And finally, he also addressed the response to the first trailer for Guardians of the Galaxy, which caused quite a stir when it arrived online last week: ” I was very pleased with it, because it’s still early days for us, as the movie is coalescing and formulating itself in the cutting room, but there are a few things that we would be locked into: the cast, their looks, our use of music and our very unique tone. The fact that that’s what that teaser is about and that’s what people are embracing, there are a lot of happy people in the offices, that people are into this.”
Originally published February 25, 2014. Updated April 11, 2018.
