What If...? showed us how much Christine Palmer means to Stephen Strange as the Sorcerer Supreme doomed his entire reality in an effort to save her life. Events are a little different in the MCU, of course, but we know the hero has strong feelings for his old colleague based on how things played out in 2016's Doctor Strange.
In the trailer for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Christine is shown walking down the aisle in a wedding dress, but is Stephen the one she's getting married to? It's a nice thought, but no.
"They are not back together, unfortunately," confirmed producer Richie Palmer during a recent interview in D23 Magazine. "As we saw at the end of Doctor Strange, he chose to stay in the Sanctum, meaning he can't entertain his selfish desires. He would've loved to stay with Christine at the end of that movie, but he did the hard thing. He said, 'No. I'm going to be a Super Hero and defend our reality. I have to move on.'"
"Our movie shows him dealing with the decisions he's made," he continued. "He might regret how things ended with Christine; he still carries a torch for her."
While someone else has won Christine's heart in the time that's passed since we first met Doctor Strange, the trailer also appeared to show her heading on a trip through the Multiverse alongside the former Sorcerer Supreme and America Chavez. However, the prevailing theory is that Rachel McAdams is also playing Clea, a Variant who just so happens to look exactly like Strange's old flame.
That's going to make this adventure even more mind-bending for the titular hero, but could give him a second chance at finding love after denying himself a relationship with Christine in the MCU.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is set to be released in theaters on May 6.