Doctor Strange 2’s post-credits scene sends Stephen on a new adventure

Doctor Strange’s latest adventure is here and, like all Marvel movies, it’s got plenty of setups for where the series could go next. While most of these happen during the course of Stephen Strange’s journey through the multiverse, the movie saves the biggest one for the credits.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness has two credits scenes, one that happens midway through and another that comes after the final credits have rolled. In case you’re pressed for time, only the movie’s first teaser seems relevant to the wider MCU story, but the second one is definitely worth sticking around for too.

[Ed. note: This story contains spoilers for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.]

Image: Marvel Studios

The mid-credits scene starts with Doctor Strange walking down the street after his third eye has opened in the closing scene of the movie, when he’s suddenly interrupted by a new interdimensional traveler.

The woman doesn’t introduce herself, but in the film’s credits she’s listed as “Clea,” as played by Charlize Theron. In the universe of Marvel Comics, Clea is Stephen Strange’s on-again-off-again wife and fellow adventurer — the closest thing he has to a regular love interest. Hailing from another dimension entirely, she’s also a sorcerer of great renown, and following Stephen’s recent death in the comics, she’s currently the Sorcerer Supreme.

Clea tells Stephen that he’s caused an Incursion and that they need to go fix things. When she asks if he’s ready to go, his third eye opens, he says he’s ready, and they hop through the portal she opened.

Clea’s comic book origin story is a little complicated, especially for the movie version of Stephen. Her father is Prince Orini, a former ruler of the Dark Dimension and a loyal servant of Dormammu, who Strange defeated in his first solo MCU movie. It’s unclear what Clea’s MCU origin will be, or what her power set might include, but we at least know that she can teleport between what appear to be different dimensions — a power that would match the version of the character in the comics.

The movie’s other teaser scene, at the very end of the credits, takes us back to Earth-838, the world of the Illuminati, and the story of the pizza vendor played by Bruce Campbell. Finally, after what was apparently weeks of hitting himself in the face, Campbell’s character regains control of his limbs. After celebrating the fact that he’s no longer beating himself up, he then looks into the camera and shouts, “It’s over!” giving the movie one last gag to let audiences know to leave the theater.

While the Clea scene is clearly a tease for Doctor Strange’s next MCU adventure, it’s almost impossible to say what exactly it could mean. After all, in an infinite multiverse, there are also an infinite opportunities for sequels.