Marvel Studios' Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is becoming one of the hottest topics in the comic book movie world ahead of its May 6 release. Benedict Cumberbatch's Stephen Strange is set to team up with an incredible roster of supporting players to tackle his Multiversal problems. This includes Elizabeth Olsen's Scarlet Witch, Benedict Wong's Wong, and an MCU newcomer in Xochitl Gomez's America Chavez.
Gomez's new character is already making quite the impact ahead of her MCU debut thanks to her incredible powers and her ties with the Young Avengers from Marvel Comics. She'll also bring a power set into the Marvel narrative that's unlike anything ever seen in MCU history, even in a film with multiple sorcerers, chaos magic, and versions of the X-Men in play.
Having only seen a few seconds of screentime and one line of dialogue through promotional material thus far, America's introduction to the MCU is still largely shrouded in mystery. Thankfully, some details surrounding her first Marvel movie are coming to light courtesy of key players helping bring her to life on the big screen alongside Doctor Strange.
Doctor Strange's First Interactions with America Chavez
In the Spring 2022 issue of Disney's D23 Magazine obtained by The Direct, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness co-producer Richie Palmer and star Xochitl Gomez explored America Chavez's introduction to the MCU.
Palmer said that America is someone that Marvel Studios has been "trying to get into the MCU for a long time," admitting that Doctor Strange 2 was the perfect place to do it. Since her powers allow her to traverse the Multiverse with relative ease, it puts her in conflict with Doctor Strange and Wong, who have a responsibility "to protect those barriers" between universes:
“America is someone we’ve been trying to get into the MCU for a long time. This felt like the best place to do it, because ‘Multiverse’ is in the title and her powers specifically have to do with the Multiverse - her powers being that she can punch open doorways to other universes. That’s something we haven’t seen in our movies, a character who can actually walk from one universe to another. That’s maddening in itself for characters such as Doctor Strange and Wong, whose jobs are to protect those barriers.”
The report shares how America meets Strange and Wong in the streets of New York City as a giant monster (Gargantos) chases her through the city. Palmer made it clear that Strange and Wong will stand and fight something like that from another reality:
“If a threat like that comes into our reality from another, those guys are going to fight it.”
Gomez chimed in by looking at Strange wanting to understand America better after their first meeting. She also looked into her character by sharing that she "just keeps going," no matter what's in front of her:
“He naturally wants to know more about her. With America, she just keeps going, especially when things are going wrong - and everything is going completely wrong for her. She’s running away from her uniqueness, until she learns to embrace it. She just never loses hope, and I can relate to that. She’s aspirational that way.”
Two Powerful Multiversal Heroes Meeting
Rumors have pointed to America Chavez's story featuring the villainous tentacled monster Gargantos as he tries to obtain her powers to gain complete control of the Multiverse. According to this new report, this plot point will supposedly come into play almost immediately after their arrival into the story as America runs through New York City.
Footage from the second Doctor Strange 2 trailer showed some of this action as America runs amongst the crowd, all while Gargantos unleashes his might on the surrounding area. How fast this action comes into the movie is still a mystery, but it's clear that the young heroine will be in for a world of trouble as soon as she travels to the MCU's core universe.
With so many threats in front of Doctor Strange in this movie, his reaction to America's abilities will be telling as he learns about her Multiversal powers. Whether he sees her as a threat or an ally at first will have fans intrigued, particularly with her being able to break the barriers that he's trying so desperately to protect.
Regardless of how everything turns out, America's first moments will be something to watch out for as she and Gargantos wreak havoc in the city streets.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness will debut in theaters on May 6, 2022.
