Doctor Strange is going to be very different from everything fans have seen so far in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Granted, it's still a superhero origin story, but Stephen Strange is hardly your typical superhero. His powers are based in the supernatural, his adventures take place across different dimensions, and his foes are looking to alter the state of reality itself. Plus, in addition to all the magic and the weirdness going on, there's also a dark side to the film... but just how dark will it get? Is Doctor Strange scary?
The film isn't a horror movie by any stretch, but it certainly has some horror pedigree. The film's director, Scott Derrickson, is best known for his work in the scary movie genre, having helmed Hellraiser: Inferno, The Exorcism of Emily Rose, Sinister, Deliver Us from Evil, and Sinister 2 — all of which he co-wrote. He also co-wrote Doctor Strange with C. Robert Cargill, and the same duo previously penned both Sinister films. So it's pretty safe to say that some pretty scary minds were behind Doctor Strange , but how much of Derrickson's and Cargill's horror expertise ended up in the final product? Will this be the first Marvel movie that's considered unsafe for kids?
The movie is expected to be Marvel's darkest yet and may even contain the franchise's first real scary scenes. Much of the movie deals with other dimensions, and there are some evil, demonic-like powers at work in some of these other dimensions. After screening some IMAX preview footage of the film earlier in October, Derrickson took to Reddit to answer fan questions, where he said: "There is no straight horror in the movie, but it is a bit darker and more serious than other Marvel movies. I think the connection between my horror films and this film is the balance of the supernatural/fantastical with very realistic, grounded characters." A fan then pointed out a particular scene "with a lot of hands ... that felt horror-esque," to which Derrickson replied, "Yeah, that's pretty freaky, I admit."
Doctor Strange will have its dark moments, and will almost certainly be scarier than any Marvel movie to date — but that doesn't mean it's a scary movie. At the end of the day, it is still a Marvel superhero movie, so feel free to bring the kids!
Images: Walt Disney Pictures; Giphy
