With a menagerie of Multiversal menaces and the prospects of past web-slingers and a horned hero potentially returning, it's easy to forget that Spider-Man: No Way Home will be uniting Peter Parker with another protagonist: Benedict Cumberbatch's Doctor Strange. The Sorcerer Supreme was one of the first characters to be reported for the threequel, who will aid Tom Holland's hero in making the world forget he is Spider-Man.
Stephen Strange was originally set to be a greater part of No Way Home's initial marketing plan, which would have presented "a civil war" between the Master of the Mystic Arts and Spider-Man. Footage and information about the threequel have indeed teased a faceoff between the two heroes, with one promo in particular displaying the two about to square up against an Inception-inspired backdrop.
Now, a gnarly picture of Cumberbatch on No Way Home's set has been revealed.
Benedict Cumberbatch Skateboards on No Way Home Set
In an interview on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, the cast of Spider-Man: No Way Home appeared to promote the film ahead of its December 17, 2021 release.
Doctor Strange actor Benedict Cumberbatch was questioned about a certain behind-the-scenes image taken by co-star Zendaya, which shows Cumberbatch skateboarding on the No Way Home set while still fitted with his Sorcerer Supreme hairdo.
Zendaya was a clear fan of Cumberbatch's style, as she exclaimed that she "just thinks it's so cool...to see Doctor Strange..." in such a casual and hip manner. The Sorcerer Supreme actor had a humorous response, joking that he "think[s] that's just minutes before I crash into the trailer."
Cumberbatch then followed up with a more serious answer about the origin story of his skateboarding:
"I mean, well yeah, I skated a bit as a kid but we just we never really had a place to do it. The school I was at was in the countryside, so we were sort of skating down rough dirt tracks and stuff, not concrete."
Doctor Strange: Master of the Skateboarding Arts
While Doctor Strange likely won't kickflip, nosegrab, or deathslide his way to victory in Spider-Man: No Way Home, it's a lot of fun to see the Sorcerer in such a casual setting. Fans get somewhat of a glimpse at Stephen Strange's life outside of superhero-ing in trailers for the threequel, where he is sporting a puffy winter coat to brave the Sanctum Sanctorum's snowy interior.
Perhaps viewers will get a bit more insight into Strange's personal life: his hobbies, his pet peeves, his love life. Marvel Studios tends to flesh out its heroes by placing them in situations that are separate to the superhero lifestyle to round them out as characters, such as the party sequence in Avengers: Age of Ultron or the dinner scene in Captain Marvel. The MCU could always give Stephen Strange a rad pastime to show that he isn't as stern and stoic as initially presumed.
Viewers can find out whether the Skateboarder Supreme will be bringing any tricks when Spider-Man: No Way Home releases on December 17, 2021.
