Warning: The following contains major spoilers for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

Wētā FX's VFX supervisor Erik Winquist recently discussed a grotesque but hilarious idea that almost made it into the epic battle between Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch and the zombified version of Steven Strange in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

Speaking with Indie Wire, the VFX artist talked about how the team considered having Zombie Strange "hurl his undead arm at the Scarlet Witch in an attempt to strangle her" during the climactic fight, but the concept was eventually cut. Winquist explained that "it was possibly the ‘Raimiest’ of Raimi moments in this scene. [Cutting it] was the right decision for the film, but it would have been a riot to work on."

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He also described how he and the team went about creating the aesthetic of Zombie Strange. "I thought it could be interesting to see those muscles moving his face around," he stated. "After exploring a few options, it became clear that the important thing to Sam was seeing all those teeth, which the muscles or sinewy stringy bits were covering up. So we threw the anatomy book out the window and just focused on making the remaining rotten cheek and teeth look great. Or terrible, I guess."

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, which is the 28th movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and premiered in theaters on May 6, is the MCU's first official foray into the horror genre. Director Sam Raimi, who is a veteran of the genre with his filmography including iconic titles like Drag Me to Hell and the Evil Dead franchise, has been open about his excitement in contributing to the movie. "I was able to take those horror films that I made in my youth and [use] what I had learned from them building suspense sequences, titillating the audience," the director said.

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In fact, the movie includes a subtle but funny reference to the Evil Dead franchise; in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Bruce Campbell plays a street vendor who ends up temporarily cursed to punch himself in the face over and over. This moment pays homage to the scene in Evil Dead II when Campbell's Ash battles his own possessed hand. Multiple other horror classics are referenced in the Doctor Strange sequel, including 2002'sThe Ring, 1985's Day of the Dead, 1980's The Shining and 1976's Carrie.

Starring Benedict Cumberbatch, Elizabeth Olsen, Benedict Wong, Xochitl Gomez and Chiwetel Ejiofor, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is now playing in theaters.

Source: Indie Wire