Daniel Craig has finally responded to rumors that he was once a member of the MCU’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
While Benedict Cumberbatch’s sequel did not have as many Multiverse shenanigans as anticipated, it did explore one interesting concept – the Illuminati.
After arriving on Earth-838, the story introduced the formidable team of heroes tasked with safeguarding that reality. Professor X, Reed Richards, Captain Carter, Captain Marvel, Black Bolt, and Master Mordo made up the team.
However, previously released concept art revealed another key character who was originally planned to join in the fun: Balder the Brave. Furthermore, Daniel Craig was rumored to be in the role.
There is an undeniable resemblance to Craig in the aforementioned concept art, but the actor has never addressed the claims.
That, thankfully, has now changed.
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Was Daniel Craig ever a part of Doctor Strange?
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery star Daniel Craig addressed rumors that he was once set to play a brief role in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness in an interview with Happy Sad Confused’s Josh Horowitz.
When asked if he’d ever heard of the character of Balder the Brave, which the actor was rumored to play, Craig responded hesitantly, “No.”
However, when Horowitz directly mentioned the alleged reports of him being in Doctor Strange, the actor took a sip of his drink and hid behind the mug.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he replied suspiciously.
While Horowitz was not going to get a confirmation from Craig, he did ask if the actor would accept a role in the MCU in the first place:
“I’d take any job if the hours were reasonable (laughs)…absolutely. Yes, absolutely.”
In a separate interview with BBC Radio 1’s Ali Plumb, when asked about the same rumors, the actor stated that he “[doesn’t] know where these [rumors] come from:”
“Everything is rumor… I mean, I have no idea where these things come from. There’s a lot of lockdown craziness going on.”
Balder the Daniel Craig
It’s not surprising that Craig would deny these rumors; after all, that’s how Marvel operates. Perhaps he got some pointers from Spider-Man actor Andrew Garfield.
The fact that Balder’s concept art bears Craig’s likeness is proof enough that he was at least officially considered for the role. When the studio requests it, those artists will create sketches and keyframes in the likeness of specific actors.
A previous tweet from The Hollywood Report’s Justin Kroll revealed how Craig opted out of Multiverse of Madness during filming due to a spike in COVID.
Craig, on the other hand, clearly has nothing against the MCU. In fact, the actor appears eager to collaborate with Marvel Studios.
So it’s only a matter of time before he joins the party in some capacity.
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