The Marvels director Nia DaCosta shared her criticism of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness' Incursions - which will soon become vital to the larger story of Kang and the Multiverse Saga.
Doctor Strange 2 laid the groundwork for Avengers: Secret Wars with the introduction of Incursions, which take place when two universes collide, resulting in the destruction of one or both worlds.
The MCU's Incursions explanation was delivered on Earth-838 by John Krasinski's Reed Richards, who explained how "the larger the footprint" that Doctor Strange left behind on a different Earth, "the greater the risk of the incursion."
Captain Marvel 2 Director Criticizes Doctor Strange 2's Incursions
Speaking in an interview with Total Film, The Marvels director Nia DaCosta revealed her frustrations with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness' introduction of Incursions in the MCU.
DaCosta has been open about how much of a comic nerd she is, with Total Film's report going into her history of writing fan fiction, trading comics with Ms. Marvel actress Iman Vellani, and even her problems with the MCU's Incursions.
The Captain Marvel 2 director explained how Doctor Strange 2's explanation of Incursions "was always very stressful to [her]," seemingly citing her problems with how they differ from Marvel Comics.
Addressing the prospective viewers of The Marvels, DaCosta proclaimed how she is "deeply devoted to the comics" and "there's always cues there:"
"I would just say, for anyone watching this film, or having expectations, just know that I am deeply devoted to the comics. And so, there’s always clues there."
John Krasinski's Mister Fantastic explained how Incursions work during the Illuminati scene, and his understanding of the matter appeared to differ from the comics:
"Stephen, your arrival here confuses and destabilizes reality. The larger the footprint you leave behind, the greater the risk of an incursion... An Incursion occurs, when the boundary between two universes erodes, and they collide. Destroying one, or both, entirely."
While the MCU's Incursions occur due to inhabitants of one universe leaving a "footprint" behind in another, the ones in Marvel Comics were a far different event with a very different cause behind them - the Beyonders.
The all-powerful Beyonders, a race of cosmic beings who exist outside the Multiverse - decided to put an end to the infinite universes by placing a bomb called Molecule Man, originally a Fantastic Four villain, in every universe, with their deaths then setting off Incursions.
These Incursions saw two universes' Earths collide over the course of eight hours, leading to the destruction of both, unless one was prematurely destroyed, which would allow the other Earth to survive - essentially the concept of Secret Wars.
Once two universes faced an Incursion, the entire Multiverse contracted, thus leading to more Incursions and the gradual demise of the whole Multiverse.
Doctor Strange 2 visited one world that had fallen victim to an Incursion, that being the Earth of Sinister Strange which had "collapsed in on itself," as described by Earth-838's Christine Palmer.
On that Earth, Sinister Strange was the last surviving inhabitant, having been the one to cause the Incursion after using the Darkhold to dreamwalk through the Multiverse to kill versions of himself who were not with Christine Palmer, believing he was putting them out of their misery.
How Incursions Will Be Key to the MCU's Future
Nia DaCosta may have gotten rather familiar with the MCU's Incursions for Captain Marvel 2, as one rumor claimed the team-up blockbuster will set off an Incursion due to Ms. Marvel's bangles' ability to "pull things across from other dimensions," setting the stage for the next Avengers movies.
As the Multiverse Saga builds toward its Avengers climax in several years' time, Incursions are bound to become a concept revisited more. Perhaps they will even come up in Loki Season 2 as Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania already revealed Kang's Multiversal war resulted in many Incursions.
One place they are bound to become vital is Doctor Strange 3, as Multiverse of Madness' post-credits scene set the stage for the titular sorcerer to team up with Charlize Theron's Clea to fix an Incursion he caused. The threequel currently has no release date but is rumored to fall before May 2026's Avengers 5.
On the topic of the changes Incursions saw in Doctor Strange 2 from the comics, the decision was likely made to simplify the concept. The original explanation would certainly be one that would confuse much of the general audience and also requires a number of other characters and concepts to be introduced first.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is streaming now on Disney+. The Marvels will is set to hit theaters on November 10.
