Doctor Strange 3 might release before The Kang Dynasty

With Captain America and Iron Man out of the picture (for now), Benedict Cumberbatch’s Doctor Strange has taken on a larger role in the MCU. The once Sorcerer Supreme featured prominently in What If…? and Spider-Man: No Way Home before nearly tearing apart reality in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Marvel hasn’t officially announced a sequel, but a leak suggests we won’t have to wait long to see him in a leading role again, as Doctor Strange 3 is reportedly being fast-tracked so that it can hit theaters before Avengers: The Kang Dynasty.

Doctor Strange 3 might be scheduled for 2026

According to tipster Greatphase, the schedule for Phase 6 of the MCU is beginning to shake out. He claims Marvel’s 2025 film slate will likely consist of Fantastic Four, Armor Wars, Spider-Man 4, and Shang-Chi 2. You might notice that The Kang Dynasty isn’t on that list, despite Marvel having previously announced it would launch on May 2, 2025.

Marvel wants the third Doctor Strange movie to come out before Avengers 5. As a result, the 2026 lineup will consist of Doctor Strange 3, The Kang Dynasty, Eternals 2, and then Avengers: Secret Wars in December, taking the place of Avatar 4 on the schedule.

This is obviously a lot to take in, and all of it should be taken with a grain of salt. That said, Marvel has shaken up its schedule repeatedly since the pandemic started, and there’s no reason to think that every project’s release date is now locked in place.

Greatphase claims Marvel wants Scott Derrickson back for Doctor Strange 3. Derrickson helmed the first Doctor Strange, but walked away from the sequel due to creative differences. Sam Raimi ended up stepping in to direct Multiverse of Madness.

He also says that Marvel is “looking into doing a Kamar Taj set series to tie into Doctor Strange 3 as more magic users are popping up.” Presumably, Doctor Strange 3 will star Charlize Theron as Clea, who we saw briefly at the end of Multiverse of Madness.