Writer Michael Waldron Speaks On Doctor Strange Sequels Pandemic-Driven Wandavision Connection
After penning the ten-episode first season of the recent debut, Loki, then being tasked by Kevin Fiegi to construct the Doctor Strange sequel; Michael Waldron spoke with Collider.com on that process amidst the pandemic and the Doctor Strange sequels connection to Wandavision.
It’s a name unfamiliar to Marvel fans, but a name they will come to know very well; Michael Waldron.
First finding success on the widely beloved series, Community- a show that Marvel has poached talent from before in the form of the Russo brothers– Waldron has become a writer that the studio, and Kevin Feige, trusts immensely when it comes to the future of the brands new projects.
It was when Waldron was leaving a meeting with Owen Wilson of all people, that he received the offer from Fiegi to continue his presence in the MCU.
Waldron recalls the moment, stating, “I was leaving a meeting with Owen Wilson and Kevin called me and let me know what they were doing on Doctor Strange and that they were turning over the creative there and he wanted me to come on as the writer. And so, it was kind of as simple as that.”
The plans for the film were changed with the unforeseen events of the pandemic. Just after the Studio announced renowned director Sam Raimi’s involvement with the film; signing on to direct the sequel.
“At the time, that was February of last year, we were supposed to start shooting in May and it was an accelerated timetable.” The writer continues, “Obviously, COVID stopped that and they brought on Sam [Raimi]. Sam and I came on at the same time.”
Waldron goes on to note the benefits of the delay in the process; with the push back allowing Waldron and Raimi to re-craft the film from the ground up.
“The one benefit of the shutdown was Sam and I got to start from scratch and really figure out what we wanted the movie to be,”
It was this collaborative rewrite that allowed Waldron and Raimi to craft a greater bridge from the events of Wandavision, to what will occur in the sequel to Doctor Strange; aided by their great collaborative relationship with Wandavision writer Jac Schaefer.
Waldron noted, “We had access to the scripts and then to cuts [of WandaVision]. I became good friends with Jac Schaeffer, head writer of WandaVision, while I was writing Loki.”
“I had the benefit of just being able to call Jac and talk to her about Wanda’s character and everything.” Waldron continued, “it was really important to me that I do right by her with what she did with Wanda as a character.”
The Loki writer concluded by affirming his, and Sam Raimi’s, desire to make the most faithful Wanda Maximoff they could, stating, “Let’s make sure that we’re doing that justice and telling a fulfilling next chapter of that story.’”
Fans are anxiously awaiting the debut of Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness, and can now take solace in the Doctor Strange sequel’s pandemic-driven connection to the events of the widely beloved Wandavision.