Before we had the Marvel Cinematic Universe, we had Sam Raimi. The superhero boom was kicked off by the likes of X-Men. But more prominently, by director Sam Raimi’s first Spiderman movie back in 2002.

Raimi confirmed in an interview that he would be directing the newest Marvel film. The film was originally to be directed by Scott Derrickson. Derrickson has since stepped back into an executive producer role on the film due to creative differences.

Rami’s Easter Egg At An Early Shared Universe

However, this is not the first time Raimi has mentioned the Sorcerer Supreme. In 2004 Sam Raimi included an easter egg of Doctor Strange in Spiderman 2. One that directly name-dropped the character. The scene comes early on when J. Jonah Jameson, played by J.K. Simmons, is trying to come up with a snappy supervillain name for now evil Dr. Otto Octavias. The name Dr. Strange is thrown out by Jonah’s assistant, and while Jonah likes the name he notes that it is already taken. This established that the character exists within the Raimi Spiderman universe. While, at the time making fans wonder if he would have appeared later down the line.

Jonah liking the name Dr. Strange in Spiderman 2

What Sam Raimi Has To Say About The Connection

Recently during an exclusive interview with Comingsoon.net https://www.comingsoon.net/movies/news/1131363-exclusive-sam-raimi-on-coincidental-spider-man-2-doctor-strange-reference while discussing his upcoming Quibi anthology horror series, 50 States of Fright; Rami talked about the Dr. Strange easter egg in Spiderman 2 and the reason for its inclusion.

“I loved Doctor Strange as a kid, but he was always after Spider-Man and Batman for me. He was probably at number five for me of great comic book characters,” Raimi described. “He was so original, but when we had that moment in Spider-Man 2 I had no idea that we would ever be making a Doctor Strange movie. So it was really funny to me that coincidentally that line was in the movie. I gotta say I wish we had the foresight to know that I was going to be involved in the project.”

https://www.comingsoon.net/movies/news/1131363-exclusive-sam-raimi-on-coincidental-spider-man-2-doctor-strange-reference

Raimi’s Brand Of Horror

So yes; the Dr. Strange Easter egg was only ever just that. Sadly there were never any plans for the character to appear. More important though is that Raimi shows he has a deep love for the character of Dr. Strange. Doctor Strange And The Multiverse Of Madness could have been the first horror film for the MCU. Now with Raimi on board, it’ll be more horror-comedy. This is something that will no doubt excite comic fans who are eagerly awaiting the next chapter in Dr. Strange’s story. A style of movie that Raimi is intimately familiar with as the director of the Evil Dead series.

Originally scheduled for May 7th, 2021. The movie now has a release date of November 5th, 2021.

For more on Doctor Strange And The Multiverse of Madness, Marvel, the MCU, comic books, and more, make sure to check back to That Hashtag Show.