Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness visual effects artist Alexis Wajsbrot confirmed that the eponymous Master of the Mystic Arts visited a major Marvel locale in his latest cinematic outing.
During an interview with Variety, Wajsbrot discussed the scene where Doctor Strange and his ally America Chavez fly through 20 universes in only 40 seconds, several of which contain references to the original comics. "One was an Incan statue world, which ended up in the movie because Kevin Feige thought, 'Well, that could be a great world to put the Living Tribunal in.' So that world became the Living Tribunal world," he stated. "We proposed a jungle and Kevin Feige said, 'Well, it could be cool if it was Savage [Land].' It's a world that exists in the Marvel Universe, so we had to add dinosaurs. We had to model and texture and render and animate dinosaurs for two seconds, which is extremely not cost-efficient."
Debuting in 1941's Marvel Mystery Comics #22 under the name the Land Where Time Stands Still and rebranded when brought back in 1965's X-Men #10, the Savage Land is a jungle in Antarctica where dinosaurs still live under the watchful eye of the Tarzan-esque Ka-Zar. It has also been featured in other Marvel-based projects such as X-Men: The Animated Series and the 1981 Spider-Man cartoon.
Outside of introducing the Savage Land, Multiverse of Madness also featured cameos from Mister Fantastic of the Fantastic Four and Black Bolt of the Inhumans, the latter being played again by Anson Mount, who starred as the character in the Inhumans TV series. Mount said in regards to reprising the role, "Getting the call from [Marvel Studios president] Kevin Feige was one of the most unexpected of my life. It was an honor and joy to finally work with [director] Sam Raimi, who reached out to engage me on how best to do this. Beyond grateful for the experience."
While audiences adored the film's Easter eggs, Multiverse of Madness also caused controversy over its PG-13 restriction due to its darker, horror-inspired elements. Writer Michael Waldron recently defended the rating, noting, "Yeah. I mean, people's heads are melting and exploding. [Laughs] You know, I think the movies that were the most impactful for me were the movies that felt a little bit dangerous to watch as a kid, so it's kind of fun to feel like we made one of those."
Directed by Sam Raimi, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is now in theaters.
Source: Variety