New Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness concept art just dropped that depicts War World and other universes scrapped from the finished film.
The previously unseen artwork comes courtesy of concept artist Aaron Black's ArtStation portfolio. It includes various ideas abandoned during pre-production on the Doctor Strange sequel, including a world in which armies from different points throughout history battle it out. Early versions of the Master of the Mystic Arts' spirit cloak also feature, as do illustrations of what appears to be a twisted version of the Sanctum Sanctorum. Black doesn't mention whether any of these concepts were developed prior to Scott Derrickson stepping down as director, however, the inclusion of a figure on horseback resembling Nightmare in several pieces suggests this may indeed be the case.
Derrickson intended to use Nightmare as the Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness' primary antagonist prior to exiting the production. Concept artwork featuring the demonic supervillain surfaced online in August 2022 that depicts a confrontation between him and Doctor Strange outside the lake house where Strange's sister died as a child. Nightmare was ultimately replaced with Scarlet Witch as the Doctor Strange sequel's main villain when director Sam Raimi and screenwriter Michael Waldron assumed control of the project.
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Raimi and Waldron also dispensed with other elements of Derrickson's vision for the film, including at least multiversal variants of Stephen Strange himself. Concept artist Darrell J. Warner previously shared artwork of this character online. Dubbed "Marvelous Melvyn," he was apparently a street magician who traded in classic card tricks and illusions. Marvelous Melvyn also sported a decidedly different outfit from his mainstream Marvel Cinematic Universe counterpart, rocking a fez and red-and-gold robes.
It wasn't just Derrickson's ideas that wound up abandoned, though. Raimi also ditched several of his own plans for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Notably, a scene revealing the gruesome final fate of Karl Mordo was cut late in the MCU blockbuster's production cycle. Artist Jeremy Simser has since posted storyboards of the scene on Instagram, which depict the Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) conjuring the severed head of Mordo (Chiwetel Ejiofor) from thin air. Simser notes in his post that since this moment wasn't included in the film itself, fans shouldn't necessarily treat it as part of MCU canon.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is now streaming on Disney+.
Source: ArtStation