Doctor Strange's Signature Look Nearly Had A High-Fashion Modification For The Movie

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If you're going to cause rifts across space and time in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, then it's important to look the part. Even so, you might be shocked to learn just how many intricate details the "Doctor Strange" creative team had to consider while designing the costume for one of the MCU's strongest Avengers. Indeed, while he may appear to be wearing a simple cape and some loose linen, Benedict Cumberbatch's Stephen Strange actually has one of the most complicated outfits out of any worn by the franchise's heroes.

In the book "The Infinity Saga: The Art of Doctor Strange," Head of Visual Development Ryan Meinerding revealed that Strange's costume ideas were deceptively more complex than initially anticipated. "I think Doctor Strange is interesting because he actually has more accessories and more iconic elements of himself than most of the characters we've worked on," Meinerding explained. This, in turn, made it that much trickier to determine which of those components ought to be carried over to Cumberbatch's live-action take on the character. "Between the gray in his hair, the goatee, the high red collar, the Eye of Agamotto, the symbol on his chest, the blue tunic, the scars on his hands — that's a number of elements, where most times we're dealing with only two or three," Meinerding noted, calling it "an interesting challenge."

As such, the film's creatives initially settled on a look that portrayed the master of the mystic arts as having a somewhat professional edge. It was in trying to find this balance, though, that the minds behind "Doctor Strange" soon realized they were working too hard and trying to make the MCU's Stephen Strange look at home in the real world — a place the MCU has long left behind by that point.

The MCU is full of controversial costumes, but in the case of Strange, the concern was that he would stick out like a sore thumb whenever he'd wander the streets of New York. However, this became less of a concern once the "Doctor Strange" production crew realized he would rarely be doing that. "It was the same problem that Marvel had to deal with on 'Thor,'" as co-writer/director Scott Derrickson observed. "It just ended up being a problem we didn't have to address because the story organically became one where he was never really out walking the streets of New York in that costume." Thus, his attire evolved from the high-fashion look initially envisioned (see the artwork below) to his appearance in the actual movie.

Marvel Studios

Along the way, Strange's outfit underwent some interesting alterations, which resulted in him adopting a more tailored fit at one point. Of course, if the film had gone with the design seen above, the character would've looked less like Mads Mikkelsen's Kaecilius and his zealots (who underwent changes of their own in pre-production) and more like one of the heroes from the "Matrix" franchise. "We did a number of explorations into jackets and coats and fashionable men's outerwear that felt heightened but not traditionally 'superhero' — but could take a few steps to become a superhero look. I did quite a few animation sequences along those lines," as Meinerding recalled.

Ultimately, Strange's look veered further away from a high-end doctor in a sharp suit and more in line with the character's original comic book design by Steve Ditko, just like the rest of the wild universe that Derrickson so brilliantly brought to life. Quite frankly, it was just what the doctor ordered.