The fans wanted to see it.
The screenwriter was down for it.
So why didn't Tom Cruise appear in "Doctor Strange 2"?
Keep watching to find out!
Spoilers for "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness" ahead!
While top-tier cameo-killer Wanda Maximoff went to town on some of Marvel's most powerful
figures in "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness," there was one supposed guest
appearance for which she never even needed to break a sweat.
As much as some corners of the internet ended up in a frenzy theorizing that Tom Cruise
would step in as the Illuminati variant of Tony Stark in the latest "Doctor Strange"
film, it apparently just wasn't meant to be.
What could have become the new face of Stark Industries was entirely absent from the film,
no matter how many Ultron bots were on display.
"Without me, you're nothing."
In the lead-up to the release of "Multiverse of Madness," a number of fans believed that
a shot in an early trailer of a super-powered being squaring off against the Scarlet Witch
was actually a character established in Marvel comics lore named Superior Iron Man, which
is effectively a version of Tony that ends up becoming a little power-crazed.
Of course, by now, it's been confirmed that the character in question was actually Lashana
Lynch as Maria Rambeau, who in that universe is its Captain Marvel.
While some Marvel Cinematic Universe fans might be disappointed with this revelation,
it seems that according to the film's writer, Michael Waldron, we really only have ourselves
to blame.
Speaking to Rolling Stone following the release of "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,"
Waldron revealed that Tom Cruise was on his wish list for potential cameos, and even went
as far as suggesting it to Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige.
However, this was something that never came to pass, in spite of the frame-by-frame examination
of trailer footage that fans had determined teased the actor's arrival in the MCU.
Waldron told the magazine,
"Yeah, that was totally made up.
I mean, there's no cut footage of Tom Cruise!
But I love Tom Cruise, and I said to Kevin at one point, I was like, 'could we get Tom
Cruise's Iron Man?'
I remember reading about that in Ain't It Cool News back in the day, that Tom Cruise
was going to be Iron Man."
A link between Cruise and Marvel — even if not a part of "Doctor Strange" — is not
entirely outside the confines of reality, however, as Waldron noted.
Back in the '90s, the action star from "Mission: Impossible" was approached to take the role
of Tony Stark when the first attempt at bringing "Iron Man" to the silver screen was in its
earliest stages of production.
Tom Cruise as Iron Man, of course, never came to pass, and we instead got the pitch-perfect
casting of Robert Downey Jr. in the role instead, which clearly worked out pretty well in the
end.
Nevertheless, plenty of fans still held onto their hope of seeing this fun twist on-screen,
and in turn, so did Waldron, which is why he even attempted to throw the name to Feige.
Waldron admitted,
"As it was being talked about online, I was like, 'Yeah, that'd be cool!'"
Of course, nowadays, Tom Cruise's calendar is pretty crammed with appearances in some
of his established tentpole franchises.
This month, Cruise is returning to the skies in "Top Gun: Maverick," which sees him reprising
the role of Maverick Mitchell for the first time since 1986.
After that, Cruise is slated to once again steer any high-speed mode of transport he
can get his hands on in "Mission Impossible — Dead Reckoning," with parts one and two
set for release in 2023 and 2024 respectively.
As a result, when asked if Cruise was ever given a call about appearing in the MCU, Waldron
revealed that Feige and Marvel never even reached out in the first place.
He said,
"I don't believe so.
I just don't think it was ever an option, because of availability."
It's a shame that Cruise's casting never came to pass, but then again, there's a good chance
it may have taken the spotlight away from a handful of other great appearances already
in the movie.
"Maybe they're just here for me."
Also, let's face it — this is Tom Cruise, after all.
He wouldn't sign onto a superhero film unless he could, say, actually fly in a functional
iron suit while fighting a real Scarlet Witch.
Maybe next time!
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