We’ve gotten into Doctor Strange and who should direct it before, and apparently Marvel is this close to getting a director for the Sorcerer Supreme. And it’s a pretty oddball list, to be honest.
The Hollywood Reporter lists the following directors as having a crack at the chair for Doctor Strange:
- Jonathan Levine, director of Warm Bodies and All The Boys Love Mandy Lane
- Mark Andrews, best known for co-writing and taking over directorial duties on Brave
- Dean Israelite, who directed Welcome To Yesterday.
- And probably the oddest choice, Nikolaj Arcel, who was last heard from with the award-winning costume drama A Royal Affair, but has dabbled in horror.
Of the list, Levine and Arcel are the most likely to get the nod; Marvel has shown in their choice of directors a preference for experience behind the camera, and neither Andrews nor Israelite have a lot of feature experience, or experience period, really. It’s also an indication of where they’re taking the movie; Doctor Strange definitely has a surreal and sometimes pulp horror tint to it, but there aren’t any horror directors in the mix; so much for all those rumors James Wan and Tarsem were up for the job. That it’s coming down to a director notable for his romantic comedies and a tony award-winning foreign film pro is pretty offbeat even for Marvel.
Still, Marvel’s shown impeccable taste in directors in the past: Thor: The Dark World was directed by Alan Taylor, who showed an unexpected screwball sensibility that was delightful, and it looks like the Russo brothers, best known for directing sitcoms, have delivered a great Captain America movie. So regardless, we’re probably in good hands.