A closeup of Doctor Strange.
Movies - TV
Marvel Intentionally Lost Money When They Cast Doctor Strange
By JEREMY MATHAI
Marvel has made billions of dollars with the MCU movie franchise, but it had to make some financial sacrifices when casting “Doctor Strange.”
Despite initial plans to cast Joaquin Phoenix, director Scott Derrickson revealed to Slash Film that Cumberbatch was always his first and only choice.
Derrickson added that Disney went even further to accommodate him and delayed the film from its initial summer release — costing the studio quite a bit of money.
However, as a “Doctor Strange” movie was far from a guaranteed hit, Scott Derrickson and Kevin Feige knew they simply couldn't afford to make a casting mistake.
Disney doesn't usually prioritize art over commerce, but it certainly made an exception here and moved the original summer date to fall 2016, giving Derrickson the actor he wanted.