Sam Raimi confirms he's directing Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

The news marks a sensational return to superhero filmmaking for Raimi - who famously helmed the Spider-Man trilogy starring Tobey Maguire in the '00s.

Rumours had been circling for some time that the Evil Dead director was set to replace Derrickson - who was behind the first Doctor Strange film in 2016 - but this is the first time that Raimi himself has confirmed the news.

Speaking to Coming Soon, Raimi commented on a reference that is made to the Marvel character in 2002's Spider-Man 2.

He said, "When we had that moment in Spider-Man 2, I had no idea that we would ever be making a Doctor Strange movie, so it was really funny to me that coincidentally that line was in the movie.

"I gotta say I wish we had the foresight to know that I was going to be involved in the project."

Raimi also admitted that while he has been a long time fan of Doctor Strange - the character was never his favourite superhero.

"I loved Doctor Strange as a kid, but he was always after Spider-Man and Batman for me," he said. "He was probably at number five for me of great comic book characters.”

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness will serve as a sequel to the 2016 film, which Benedict Cumberbatch reprising his role as the titular character.

It was originally earmarked for a May 2021 release, but is one of many Marvel projects to have been pushed back as a result of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, and is now scheduled to appear in cinemas on 5th November 2021.

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