Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness gave Elizabeth Olsen's Wanda Maximoff the chance to move to full-blown villain status after eight years in the MCU, unleashing her power at every turn. This even led to her taking out the entire first take on Marvel's Illuminati, led by Patrick Stewart's new version of Professor X.
Stewart had made headlines for most of the last few months after first being heard in the Super Bowl trailer for Doctor Strange 2 just months after Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield similarly reprised their past Marvel roles in Spider-Man: No Way Home. This even came with the classic version of his bright yellow hoverchair from the comics and X-Men: The Animated Series, joining the dais as the final member of Earth-838's interdimensional council.
Before he was killed, Professor X took an opportunity to use his telekinetic powers in order to try and save Wanda from her alternate self, giving life to the shot from the second trailer of the camera going directly into Wanda's eye. Now, new concept art shows that moment in more detail, explaining how it evolved from the computer to the big screen.
Professor X Meets The Scarlet Witch
Concept artist Alexander Mandradjiev took to Instagram to share concept art featuring Elizabeth Olsen's Wanda Maximoff and Patrick Stewart's Charles Xavier from Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
Wanda is shown under a pile of rubble just as she was in the final cut of the movie while Stewart's Professor X reaches out to try to save her from herself in her own mind.
The professor dons his usual dress suit, getting down on one knee to help the movie's core villain fight through everything invading her mind after breaking into the Illuminati's headquarters.
The Earth-838 version of Wanda appears terrified as she looks out to Charles, trying to keep her alternate self from killing her and taking her family away from her by the end of the film.
In the background is the Scarlet Witch version of Wanda, using all of her might to destroy the Illuminati's leader and reunite with her twin sons, Billy and Tommy.
Mandradjiev described this scene as an "intense moment" to bring to the big screen as he hoped to find the right quality to make it seem like a pure nightmare for Olsen's villain:
"This was an intense moment to portray. There was a dreamy quality that I was searching for, a nightmare stuck in a loop."
The concept artist also provided a look at Doctor Strange going through a portal with multiple universes depicted around the edges, including the Savage Lands and the Dark Dimension. Mandradjiev explained how the film tried to put the audience in Doctor Strange's shoes going through so many universes with shots like this, although this one didn't make the final cut:
"We explored a multiverse worth of multiverses. The idea was to put the audience in the shoes of Dr. Strange as he traveled between universes."
Finally, Mandradjiev shared an image of Xochitl Gomez's America Chavez opening one of her classic star portals as she looked through the different universes ahead of her. The visual artist also praised his team in the Visdev department while expressing his gratitude to be a part of it in the caption:
"I had the lucky opportunity to work on Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness with Ian Joyner and Ryan Meinerding The whole Visdev team Marvel Studios is an inspiring group of artists and great friends from which I always learn and grow with. I’m very grateful for these experiences."
The MCU's First X-Man Fight Wanda
Once Patrick Stewart was confirmed to be on his way into the MCU, fans everywhere were excited to see what his Charles Xavier could do against the MCU's premier telepathy: Wanda Maximoff. As it turns out, this moment became one of the sequel's scariest as Wanda took him out fairly easily after doing the same thing to Captain Marvel, Black Blot, and Mr. Fantastic.
Wanda got to unleash her full power in Doctor Strange 2 thanks to the Darkhold's influence over her mind, putting her at a significant advantage over anybody who stood in her way throughout the story. This even included one of Marvel Comics' most powerful Mutants in Professor X, who ultimately fell to Wanda's wrath after only a few minutes inside her fractured mind.
All things considered, this battle was a monumental occasion for the MCU as two immensely powerful X-Men from the comics went mind-to-mind under the Marvel Studios umbrella for the first time. It's still unknown where or when Professor X will return via his core MCU Variant, but for now, this moment set the stage for the Mutants' eventual inclusion alongside Earth's Mightiest Heroes.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is now playing in theaters.
