One of the biggest elements of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, aside from former Avenger Scarlet Witch going absolutely bananas, was the introduction of the Illuminati on Earth-838. The all-powerful line-up included the likes of John Krasinski's Reed Richards, Maria Rambeau as Captain Marvel, an entirely different Mordo, Professor Xavier himself, Captain Carter, and Anson Mount's Black Bolt.
However, nearly all of them didn't make it out of the movie alive—aside from Mordo, who was honestly in the right place at the right time. The rest? Completely slaughtered—especially Black Bolt, whose death somehow didn't grant the movie an R-rating. Even Ms. Marvel star Iman Vellani wasn't the biggest fan of how he went out.
Despite their deaths, fans got a small glimpse at some neat alternate costumes, some of which were for characters who had yet to even appear in the MCU such as Mr. Fantastic and Black Bolt.
Now, a new behind-the-scenes featurette revealed that at least one of them was a complete CGI creation.
Black Bolt's CGI Costume in Doctor Strange 2
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness' home media release comes with a featurette titled 'Constructing the Multiverse', which ended up revealing a surprising CGI secret.
In the featurette, there's a moment where Anson Mount, who plays the Illuminati member Black Bolt in the movie, is talking with director Sam Raimi. However, instead of being in full costume, he's wearing a mo-cap suit—indicating he never wore a practical suit for his hero.
Mount can be seen still in mo-cap armor, standing next to Lashana Lynch's Captain Marvel, whose outfit is practical.
A hero who had an entirely practical costume getup looks to be Hayley Atwell's Captain Carter.
Captain Marvel can be seen taking her shot at Scarlet Witch, where she'll ultimately be on the receiving end of a crushing blow.
Another behind-the-scenes look showcases what it looked like on stage with the rest of the Illuminati members glaring down at Benedict Cumberbatch's Stephen Strange, and Mount's mo-cap suit can be seen again.
A better glimpse brings audiences down to roughly where this confrontation was witnessed in the final film, with Mount's CGI outfit on display.
Why Didn't Black Bolt's Suit Actually Exist?
While there's generally questionable CGI at some point or another in most Marvel Studios films, Black Bolt's suit would probably not have crossed many viewers' minds as being a visual effects creation. It's reminiscent of the Avengers: Endgame time travel suits, which never had a practical version made—a fact that completely blew lots of audiences' minds when it was revealed.
If Black Bolt's suit isn't real, there's a strong chance that John Krasinski's was also the product of a mo-cap suit. But why them? Well, odds are it could have had to do with when they joined the production. If they were a last-minute addition during reshoots, production may not have had the time to make a good-looking practical suit, leaving VFX as their best option.
Given the lengthy reshoots, it sure seems like that might be the reason behind it all. Fans will have to cross their fingers and hope Marvel Studios P=president Kevin Feige is kind enough to want to revisit the character of Black Bolt at some point in the near future.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is now streaming on Disney+.
