Some may find this as great news; while others are heartbroken. Deadline is reporting oscar nominated actor Joaquin Phoenix has officially dropped out of contention for the title role in Marvel's Doctor Strange . This comes off months of negotiations between the studio and the actor dating back to before San Diego Comic-Con 2014. The obvious reason was because an actor of this caliber didn't want to be tied down to a multi-picture contract that Marvel does with all their actors. It seems Marvel is back at square one trying to find their Sorcerer Supreme....
Also, yesterdays rumor that Ethan Hawke was up for the role came from an extremely unreliable website and has since been debunked by the trades. The actor has expressed interest in a recent interview but again confirms he has not been approached by Marvel.
Other names that have been rumor for the role include Benedict Cumberbatch, Tom Hardy and Jared Leto...Unfortunately, many fans would love to see Benedict Cumberbatch in the Marvel Cinematic Universe but he has current commitments for a play that starts it shows this January which is around the time Doctor Strange is suppose to start filming.
Doctor Strange is expected to hit late summer 2016
As of this morning Joaquin Phoenix still does NOT have a deal in place for Marvel's DR STRANGE.
— Umberto Gonzalez (@elmayimbe) October 2, 2014As interesting as the Ethan Hawke as Doctor Strange story may be, I'm told it's not true.
— Marc Graser (@marcgraser) October 1, 2014
