Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness will be directed by Sam Raimi, but Scott Derrickson was originally set to take the helm of the sequel before supposed "creative differences" led to his departure.
The filmmaker did a great job with 2016's Doctor Strange, so the fact that he chose to walk away from the follow-up definitely came as a surprise. Since then, we've heard reports that Marvel Studios' decision to move away from Derrickson's proposed horror vibe in favour of the Multiverse is what led to him leaving the project, but Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige has now addressed that head on.
"There's been some thought that that was the creative difference with Scott and Marvel, and it was not," Feige said when Empire Magazine (via Slash Film) asked if Derrickson's hopes to tell a Doctor Strange horror story was the problem. "Because we love that idea. The intention was that Strange would guide us into a much creepier side of the world."
The belief is that the filmmaker wanted to focus on Nightmare and tell a more self-contained story with his Doctor Strange sequel. However, after WandaVision, Loki, and Spider-Man: No Way Home, it's become a much bigger movie, and we'd bet on that being the main reason for Derrickson's departure.
With Raimi at the helm, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is in safe hands and the latest trailer proved Marvel Studios isn't shying away from embracing some classic horror movie imagery. Hopefully, Derrickson will share his take on these "creative differences" when he does the rounds to promote his next project, The Black Phone, this June.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness arrives in theaters on May 6.
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