Heading into Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, it's fair to say fans had a lot of lofty expectations. Unfortunately, many of those didn't become a reality, potentially explaining why many feel disappointed by the blockbuster. We obviously got some high-profile cameos, but, like Eternals, the Doctor Strange sequel failed to add mutants to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Wanda Maximoff has a lot of history with mutants in the comic books, of course, and even removed the powers of millions of them during the House of M storyline. With that in mind, you'd think there might be a way for the Scarlet Witch to bring them into the MCU, and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness writer Michael Waldron explained why that didn't happen while talking to ET Online.
"Yeah, we talked about House of M, and there’s plenty of examples of Wanda doing bad things throughout the comics in an effort to get her kids back," he explained. "But ultimately this story didn’t need mutants to be powerful, I guess was our feeling. And, you know, wherever that lies on the timeline for the MCU, it didn’t feel like this was the right place to introduce it."
"Then it suddenly would have just been about mutants," Waldron continued. "And this is really a story about Wanda and her grief and her descent into darkness in this movie."
We can't find fault with the decision not to include mutants in the sequel, but [SPOILER ALERT] X-Men leader Professor X did make a cameo as a member of The Illuminati on Earth-838. It's a shame we didn't learn more about his mutant status or visit a world where Homo Superior is dominant, but it's looking like Marvel Studios plans to take its time adding these characters to the MCU.
Still, a "No More Mutants" moment could happen down the line once mutants join this shared world. Don't be shocked if that takes place in the long-rumoured Secret Wars movie.
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