Thoughts On The ‘Multiverse of Madness’ Cameos
Marvel’s first film of 2022 has been added to Disney Plus, and I’ll admit it’s still on my mind. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness was a divisive MCU instalment, receiving mixed reviews from both fans and critics. Personally, I thought the film was entertaining and boasted impressive visuals, but was middle tier in terms of story and writing. However, I still find myself thinking about what was arguably the main selling point for many fans. As the multiverse opened further, people were expecting this film to go hard on cameos, a phenomenon I wrote about previously when expectations became ridiculous. The cameos weren’t something I was bothered about ahead of time, I had a “take it or leave it” attitude, but having seen the film twice I surprisingly have a lot of thoughts.
Cameos have become something of a bizarre fan expectation, with the release of big event films like Avengers: Endgame (2019) and Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021). A big part of what supposedly makes a film “good” is a cheeky appearance from a well-known actor, providing a moment for fans to clap and cheer like lunatics. But in truth, no film needs to be like this. If a story is good and the characters are compelling, then anything else is an added bonus. It certainly shouldn’t be the factor a film lives or dies on. They could put whoever they want on screen and get the biggest round of applause, but ultimately if the story doesn’t hang together and the characters are hollow, then we’ve got a problem.
Heading into this new Doctor Strange film the title promised “madness”, but instead we were served “mild.” We saw a brief clip show of various other universes, then only spent significant time in two universes outside the main MCU (now officially designated Earth-616 like the comic books). I’m personally glad this wasn’t simply a conveyor belt of lazy cameos, but it meant the film didn’t quite meet wider expectations. I’ve gathered my thoughts, and I’ve decided to analyse the cameos, considering what they bring to the story, if they’re nostalgia driven, and if they set up anything in the future. Most of the cameos were Illuminati members who met a grizzly fate by Wanda’s hand, but there’s still a lot to unpack.
From memory I’ve managed to list these cameos in the order they appear on screen, so let’s take this one cameo at a time.
Pizza Poppa - played by Bruce Campbell
I get it, the post credits scene is a call back to Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead II (1987), but outside of Raimi fandom this was unfortunately a wasted moment. It exemplifies the slippery slope of executing a good cameo. You run the risk of a cameo being so big and obvious it doesn’t elicit a reaction, or they miss the mark by referencing something outside the scope of wider audience understanding. Three guesses which category this cameo falls in to.
Mordo - played by Chiwitel Ejiofor
I was excited to see an alternate version of Mordo, particularly one who is part of the Illuminati. However, in the grand scheme, this made me more annoyed about the MCU storytelling. When Doctor Strange talks about how the 616 Mordo was a friend who broke bad and tried to kill him numerous times, it made me more frustrated that they haven’t used Mordo for six years. Comic book fans know Mordo and his antics, but everyone else is confused as to why Strange is referencing things we’ve never seen on screen! It’s like the writer thought they could get away with poorly microwaving a relationship because it works better for their film.
This is a phenomenal actor, playing one of Doctor Strange’s most important villains, and they’ve sadly been under-used and under-cooked. I like this cameo, but it left a sour taste.
Captain Carter - played by Hayley Atwell
Despite not being a fan of ‘What If…?’ I thought this worked really well! Confession time: I grew bored of The Illuminati from the comic books and their exclusively male roster, so I’m glad the film offered a fresh and progressive version of the clandestine council. I think the costume is simple but distinguished, and it translated brilliantly in live action. Crucially, this character wasn’t reduced to being a direct Captain America variant. Something about Captain Carter’s fighting style, their movement and their personality felt distinguished.
I also enjoy the irony of Captain Carter saying “I can do this all day”, followed swiftly by Wanda cutting them in half with their own shield. It subverted audience expectations and took a left turn on a line we’ve all heard before. It was brutal and unexpected, but had a big impact.
Black Bolt - played by Anson Mount
This was the moment I finally thought the film understood the definition of “madness.” It was a completely left field choice, but one which made me really happy. It was a case of the multiverse working as a storytelling tool in a big franchise. It was creators saying “that TV show bombed, but the casting choice was great, so let’s make it work” and they did! We got a totally different version of Black Bolt, in one of the MCU’s best costumes. Seriously, whatever you made of this film, nobody can deny the fact Black Bolt had a fantastic costume. It fully embraced the legendary artwork of Jack Kirby, and showcased the perfect way to translate a bold costume on screen without holding back.
Most importantly, there was a tragedy to this character, not only because of their powers, but because of events the Illuminati have experienced. Black Bolt’s involvement in the death of Doctor Strange from Earth-838 wasn’t simply shrugged off, it still haunts them. It’s strangely funny, but in a matter of minutes this film gave us a more compelling Black Bolt than Inhumans did in eight episodes. This was justice for both the actor and character, and I hope we see another strong Black Bolt emerge in the main MCU.
Captain Marvel - played by Lashana Lynch
I feel bad, but this cameo was neither here nor there. It was an interesting spin on the character of Maria Rambeau, and I enjoyed seeing more from Lashana Lynch, but it wasn’t something I talked about after either screening. What bugged me is this didn’t stand out. The difference between this and Captain Carter for example is that Captain Carter didn’t feel like an echo of another character. There was something distinct about them which made them feel like a unique character, whereas Maria Rambeau’s Captain Marvel felt like a minor spin on an existing character.
However, on another level I actually think this works quite well. Everyone assumes the multiverse is going to be bat shit crazy, when actually sometimes it can be subtle. The multiverse doesn’t have to be Tom Cruise playing a whacky version of Iron Man, it can be a familiar character who has been turned on their head slightly. It’s not necessarily “madness”, but it’s also not anything to be annoyed about.
That being said, seeing Captain Marvel defeated by a statue falling on them? I can understand why you might have strong opinions about that.
Mister Fantastic - played by John Krasinski
Black Bolt was almost my favourite cameo, but this swept in and stole the show. It’s a fan casting I’ve seen countless times in recent years, but I’d pretty much accepted it wasn’t going to happen. But then it did, and it made me incredibly happy.
This version of the character had a strong presence, there was a sense of weight and depth when they entered the room. This wasn’t just the stretchy guy who uses his powers for comedic effect like in Fantastic Four (2005), this was the smartest person in the world and a key member of the Illuminati. John Krasinski absolutely sold this version of the character; a stern and serious Reed Richards whose mind is focused on the bigger picture. It reminded me of a Fantastic Four comic book by Jonathan Hickman, where Reed Richards decides to fix every problem in the world. It was a real progression from the 1960s Reed, who smoked a pipe and just wanted to build a rocket so he and his friends could go to space. This cameo proved it’s possible to have a contemporary Fantastic Four as a serious part of the MCU, and it’s made me more excited to see their solo project. Whether Krasinski is a long term casting choice or not, I’ll always be grateful he played the character. Even if it broke my heart to see him turned into spaghetti by Wanda.
What made this even more special is the simple fact this is a new actor. Other members of the Illuminati are actors we’ve seen at a similar capacity, either inside or outside the MCU. To see a brand new face playing a new character, it’s immediately more unique than any of the other cameos.
Professor Xavier - played by Patrick Stewart
As much as I love comic book media and I loved growing up watching X-Men films, I was underwhelmed by this. Regardless of the trailers, which ruined this surprise ahead of time anyway, this was still exactly the type of cameo everyone was expecting. More than anything, I knew it was the moment when the audience were supposed to yell and clap and lose their minds, but it didn’t happen. In both screenings I attended, the audience were silent throughout the whole of the Illuminati roster reveal. If you play your biggest hand and it doesn’t get a response, it indicates something has gone wrong.
I think I’ve figured out exactly what felt off with this cameo. It’s potentially a predisposition I brought into the film, but I’m sure many other fans will have too. Despite the fact I love seeing Patrick Stewart as Professor X, it felt unnecessary after Fox gave us Logan (2017). That masterful film was a fitting and incredibly emotional end to the character, so in my mind I’d already said goodbye to them. I know this is the multiverse where anything can happen and there are infinite versions of the same character, but so many of us already have an emotional attachment to this specific portrayal of the character, and their final chapter has already happened. It’s the same reason I’m not interested in seeing Hugh Jackman return as Wolverine, because that particular version of the character has reached the end of their story. Adding anything extra is just cheap thrills. It makes me worried about what will happen with the multiverse moving forwards. An emotional end for characters like Black Widow or Iron Man could be undercut for the sake of a tacky cameo. This comes down to the issue highlighted by Doctor Ian Malcolm in Jurassic Park, because we’re in the realm of Marvel Studios doing things because they could rather than thinking about whether they should.
Clea - played by Charlize Theron
This one was bittersweet. On one hand, I like the character and this is a solid casting choice. On the other hand, this was so bloody random! It’s a case of the right move being made at the wrong time. This is one of the most important characters in Doctor Strange history (particularly if you’re reading the current ‘Strange’ comic book series by Jed MacKay), and they were blurted out at the end like an insulting afterthought. It was random and abrupt, and didn’t seem to follow from the events of the film in an organic way. They should have either fully incorporated the character into what was already happening, or left it for next time. This should have been a massive reveal, but instead it was the cameo equivalent of fly-tipping. Clea was thrown onto a road side with an old stained sofa, as Marvel drove off into the sunset.
I’m excited to know Clea exists in the MCU and they clearly have a big future, it just wasn’t quite the time or place for a sudden introduction. I know there’s a Marvel tradition of debuting new characters in post credits scenes, but that’s clearly not a trick which is guaranteed to work every time.
So where did this leave us in terms of a cinematic experience? Being honest, it left us in an awkward place. The cameos should never have been the main selling point of the film, but I’m still surprised they dropped the ball. There were some fantastic surprises and I’m grateful for those, but there were also some poor choices which didn’t land. I’m glad this wasn’t wall-to-wall cameos, but I won’t say I’m too impressed by the finished product. For this film to grab a wider positive response they needed to go hard on either the cameos or the story, but they under-performed on both fronts. Which results in the cinematic equivalent of a microwave lasagne: it looks fantastic, and at surface level it’s hot, but as you dig further down you realise the various layers are stone cold.
In terms of the bigger picture, I’m left feeling like the multiverse isn’t quite working for Marvel yet. Following directly from No Way Home, we had two films in a row which were relying more on cameos, rather than the quality of storytelling. Granted, it’s fine to be self-congratulatory from time to time, but at least wait to measure the audience response before thinking you’ve nailed the assignment. I don’t want to feel negative about the multiverse story line, because I know it’s still early days. I’m excited to see Kang the Conqueror wreak havoc, and I’m intrigued to see the build up to the next two Avengers films, but at the moment things just don’t seem right. This is our next big saga for the MCU, and yet the multiverse is being overshadowed by better stories. The most interesting projects right now are the smaller solo stories. Moon Knight, WandaVision, Shang-Chi etc. These are the stories which are making a bigger impact, because they’re disciplined and character driven. Moving forwards the films should focus less on cheap thrills, and more on story, character arcs, and giving the audience something to emotionally invest in. Otherwise it’s just poor distraction tactics. Using cheap cameos to distract from bad writing starts to feel like a magic trick which has gone wrong; the colourful flowers protruding from their wand isn’t enough to distract from the dead rabbit poking out of their hat.
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