There are a number of ways you can take the news that Benedict Cumberbatch was cast as Doctor Strange in the appropriately titled “Doctor Strange”, and I’ll walk you through them:
1. Oh god, it’s that “Sherlock” guy? He’s everywhere.
2. OH MY GOD, IT’S SHERLOCK! I LOVE HIM!
3. Finally they cast someone. ANYONE.
4. Who?
The last one isn’t very realistic, but for a guy who is immensely popular, he is popular to a specialized audience that seemingly resides on Tumblr. And the Cumberbacklash is real, as some people are tired of seeing him in damn near everything. But there’s a very real reason as to why he’s in everything, and it’s because he is completely fucking fantastic (excuse my French).
Benny, as we call him in the Harper Household, is a wondrously gifted actor known for his role in “Sherlock” and as neo-Khan in “Star Trek: Into Darkness”, and he’s someone who apparently can set the world ablaze as Alan freaking Turing in the upcoming “The Imitation Game”, so I highly doubt Stephen Strange will be difficult for him. Aesthetically and personality wise, he’s a stellar match for the character as his presence and personality can both feel magically gifted and dickish in the way that Stephen Strange was before he was the Doctor we know him as.
There will be a lot more on this as the film builds, as Dormammu appears to have the lead as the villain (speaking of, Cumberbatch would have been great as him as well), but this is a remarkably great start for the Scott Derrickson helmed film, which is set to arrive in July of 2016.
Note: I suck at reading, but apparently this isn’t a done deal. Yet. It sure seems like one, but the signature is not on the contract yet.
Update: From Kevin Feige at #MarvelEvent about Cumberbatch as Doctor Strange: “If it was confirmed, we would have announced it today.”
Update #2: A month and a half later, Marvel has now officially announced Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Strange. So, you know, the same stuff we said back in October.
