The Marvel Cinematic Universe is a tricky place. In addition to the pressure of adapting beloved comic book characters for the silver screen, there are also certain checkpoints that every MCU movie is expected to complete. These expectations include, but are not limited to, creating a memorable villain, action sequences, a story we care about, and lots of humor. Since The Avengers, humor has come to the forefront of the MCU, and each movie has the pressure of not taking itself too seriously. As such, some of the heavier movies might need to enlist some help to keep it light; this is exactly what happened with the upcoming installment Doctor Strange.
Doctor Strange producer Kevin Feige recently spoke to the good folks at Entertainment Weekly for the continued advertisement and marketing of the movie. The subject eventually turned to Rick and Morty creator Dan Harmon, who apparently came in to help make sure Doctor Strange stayed fun:
We are all big fans of his work, clearly. We're also fans of his cartoon Rick & Morty, which is about, of course, humor, but I would argue that any given episode of that show has an unbelievably amazing sci-fi concept that could be its own movie. So, really, we just wanted him to watch the movie, and talk to us about it, and give us his opinions on the sci-fi concepts. That was as important to us as any humor that he could add to the movie.
There you go, people. The man behind the bizarre and hilarious cartoon multiverse is on board for Doctor Strange, which has the possibility of opening an entirely new demographic of people to the MCU.
Rick and Morty is a cartoon that airs on Adult Swim. Created by Dan Harmon, it revolves around an alcoholic mad scientist who often takes his grandchildren on wild adventures through space and time. Somewhat of a black comedy, we see Rick try all sorts of crazy experiments that result in hilarity for the audience.
This seems like exactly the influence needed in order to ensure that Doctor Strange has plenty of comedy, while also remaining faithful to the source material. Doctor Strange will mostly be an action/adventure sci-fi film, but also contain moments of levity. Just like Rick and Morty, Doctor Strange will focus heavily on alternate dimensions, which should make for a trippy moviegoing experience when coupled with the cinematography. The two projects' similarities don't stop there, as Rick and Morty ends every episode with a post-credits scene, which has now become a standard practice within the MCU.
The pressure to make MCU movies contain light moments has only become more prevalent due to the follies of the DC Extended Universe. Zack Snyder's Man of Steel and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice were both extremely morose, making the films appear one note in regards to tone. The DCEU plans to lighten things up in the future, so the MCU has to remain consistent with the genre it helped to create.
Are you excited for some moments of comedy in Doctor Strange, or should it be a straight up drama? Sound off in the comments below.
