With tickets already available for pre-sale for Benedict Cumberbatch’s second solo MCU outing ahead of its May 4 premiere (or 5 or 6, depending on where you live), moviegoers couldn’t stop themselves from throwing money at Disney. It’s now come to the point that the sequel is already out-performing every other 2022 film in ticket pre-sales, including this year’s highest-grossing film so far, The Batman. According to Fandango, Doctor Strange 2 has sold more pre-sale tickets in its first 24 hours than any other 2022 film in the same period. Furthermore, Doctor Strange 2’s pre-sales ticket numbers are now the biggest since Spider-Man: No Way Home. Fandango did not elaborate if Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ pre-sale ticket numbers are approaching No Way Home’s. However, the way things are going does make Cumberbatch’s previous words about how the sequel will match No Way Home sound prophetic.
— Fandango (@Fandango) April 7, 2022 Marvel Studios has made a living out of once-in-a-lifetime events. The Kevin Feige-led production company is behind 10 of the 48 films that have grossed over $1 billion and 2 out of the films that have pulled in over $2 billion. If Doctor Strange 2 keeps up its sales figures, the House of Mouse might have just another billion-dollar blockbuster film under its belt. It would not surprise us if Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness ended up outselling Spider-Man: No Way Home. The Doctor Strange sequel is a culmination of the MCU’s post-Endgame events as it will build on everything that WandaVision, Loki, and No Way Home explored to bust the door on alternate worlds wide open. Judging from the latest TV spot, all bets are off about what can potentially happen in Elizabeth Olsen’s first return to the big screen as the Scarlet Witch since 2019’s Avengers: Endgame. Right now, Marvel fans are well-aware that, regardless of what happens, things are never going to be the same in the MCU. Hopefully, Sam Raimi’s directorial debut in the MCU will make use of every bit of its long screentime to introduce characters from now-defunct film universes like the X-Men from the FOX universe, or a multiversal organization like the Illuminati and maybe Deadpool.
