On the poster for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Benedict Wong returned to AlloCiné on the journey of his character Wong, on the importance of the film in the MCU and the production of Sam Raimi.
Due in theaters May 4, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness pushes the boundaries of the Marvel Cinematic Universe with a journey into the unknown for Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), aided by mystical allies old and new, including Wong . AlloCiné spoke with his interpreter Benedict Wong to come back to his character and his evolution in the MCU until this film which crosses the mind-blowing and dangerous realities of the multiverse.
He’s been playing Wong in the Marvel Universe for six years now, and since the first Doctor Strange movie, Benedict Wong’s character has come a long way. It has also been seen in Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame, Shang-Chi and The Legend of the Ten Rings as well as Spider-Man: No Way Home. And above all, he became the Sorcerer Supreme, a major evolution for a character that the actor did not know before playing him:
“I just had no idea there was a character called Wong in the Marvel Universe. I used to collect all these comics, Spider-Man comics especially, when I was a kid. I discovered the existence of this character thanks to my friend Chiwetel Ejiofor [qui incarne Mordo, ndlr] when we were filming Alone on Mars together. He told me he was going to play in Doctor Strange.
I didn’t have an agent at the time and they still managed to find me. I managed to land the role. And one of the first discussions with Kevin Feige and Stephen Broussard was about source material, the comics that they drew inspiration from.
In the comics, the character was portrayed as subservient and that was a trait I didn’t want Wong to have. Luckily, we realized we had the same intentions for this character and we tuned our violins to create this Wong, who evolved exponentially into the Sorcerer Supreme.”
Besides his duet with Doctor Strange, Wong will interact with other characters in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness like America Chavez (Xochitl Gomez), whom the rest of the cast took under their wing according to Benedict Wong. :
“We’re introducing a new character to the Marvel Cinematic Universe and all in the capable hands of Xochitl Gomez, when she was just 14 years old. We watched over her and made sure to be true support. And I think she did an exceptional job. It’s a great start for her!”
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Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is also an opportunity for Benedict Wong to work with Sam Raimi, whom he considers “a master” and to whom we owe the Spider-Man trilogy with Tobey Maguire. For the actor, it is “a wonderful man who took into account what Scott Derrickson and the team had put in place in the first part and took over with a master hand”.
He was impressed by the director who returns twenty years after the Spider-Man trilogy in the Marvel universe by bringing “a darker dimension” : “If you’re a fan of Sam Raimi and the Marvel movies, you’ll be delighted”. In any case, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness will mark a turning point in Phase IV of the MCU:
“Infinity War and Endgame were closing chapters. It’s almost like we have to start over. So what better, with what happened in WandaVision and No Way Home, than to smash those parallel realities now? They can introduce new characters in a smart way.
It’s a daunting task, even for me. Because you never really know what you’re filming. For me, it’s a series of surprises, it’s just a bonus. Obviously, becoming the Sorcerer Supreme is a great promotion for my character, but we’ll see what happens next. Personally, as a fan, it’s been fun to watch and awesome to be a part of.”