Benedict Cumberbatch first played the Sorcerer Supreme in 2016's Doctor Strange and almost immediately made his presence felt in the wider MCU.
It started with a cameo in Thor: Ragnarok before the hero showed up as a key player in Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame, and Spider-Man: No Way Home. From there, Strange - who was replaced by Wong as Sorcerer Supreme during the Blip - took centre stage in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
The Sam Raimi-helmed sequel featured a multitude of Strange Variants, as has Disney+'s What If...? However, it was in the movie's closing moments that the hero met Dormammu's daughter Clea and was enlisted to help stop an Incursion he'd supposedly caused.
We haven't seen Strange since, but in a new interview looking back at his career, Cumberbatch confirmed he'll shoot a new Avengers movie in 2025.
"This is Doctor Strange," the British actor started. "He's a Marvel character and, well, I'll be really honest about it, the joy of playing him is immense. But also the joy of playing him means I can help create and platform stories and writing and less commercial fare into being. He's a gift in many, many ways in my life as a producer, as an actor."
"I love playing him. He's great fun. I'm very much looking forward to Avengers next year which is cooking up a storm," Cumberbatch teased.
Not only does this suggest Strange will be a major part of Avengers 5 but it likely confirms Doctor Strange 3 will not be released before the next time Earth's Mightiest Heroes assemble.
We know Disney is eager for Marvel Studios to move away from threequels, so Strange's story continuing in the Avengers movies might be an alternative to greenlighting a third movie revolving around him and Clea. It's still possible that will also go into production in 2025, of course, with it dropping between Avengers 5 and Avengers: Secret Wars.
We'll have to wait and see, but it's exciting to know Strange's MCU return is somewhere on the horizon. Michael Waldron is writing Avengers 5 and its sequel, and as he penned Multiverse of Madness, it makes sense for him to throw Stephen into the mix.
You can hear more from Cumberbatch below.