Welcome to the multiverse!
“Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” has arrived. In this adventure, which serves as both a sequel to 2016’s “Doctor Strange” and a direct follow-up to both the Disney+ original series “WandaVision” and last year’s blockbuster “Spider-Man: No Way Home” (where Doctor Strange co-starred with Spider-Man). This time around, the good Doctor (once again played by Benedict Cumberbatch) teams up with Wanda aka the Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) and newcomer America Chavez (Xochitl Gomez) on a multiverse-hopping trek. As directed by Sam Raimi, who before helming the initial “Spider-Man” trilogy made movies like “Evil Dead II,” this new “Doctor Strange” is macabre and occasionally quite scary. And there are plenty of surprises.
But really, one question might hover above all when it comes to “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” – how many credits scenes does the movie actually have? We’ll answer that and more … RIGHT NOW.
This is spoiler-free. It’s not about what the credits scenes are, just whether or not they exist.
Does “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” have credits scenes?
Yes, of course it does! This is Marvel Studios we’re talking about here. They basically pioneered the art of the post-credits sequence when Samuel L. Jackson showed up following the credits for the first “Iron Man” back in 2008.
How many credits scenes does “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” have?
It has two, which is about the average for most Marvel Studios movies. (Remember when “Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2” had five credits scenes?) One of the scenes happens after the wonderful, Rorschach test-inspired main-on-end credits sequence and then one happens at the very end of the credits, after all the caterers and visual effects artists have been properly thanked.
Do you need to stick around for both scenes?
Yes, probably. Both scenes are really fun and funny and perfectly align with the genial madcap tone of the rest of “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.”
Do you have time to run to the bathroom after the mid-credits scene but before the post-credits scene?
Yes. A lot of talented people work on these Marvel Studios movies and “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” is no exception. They are all credited. And that takes a while. Of course, with the film currently streaming on Disney+, there is also an option to fast-forward.
Do the scenes contribute in meaningful ways to the ongoing mythology of the Marvel Cinematic Universe?
One of them does.
What does that mean?
Well, one of them is integral and builds on mythology while introducing a previously unseen character into the MCU. (Think Harry Styles showing up as a sexy spaceman during the “Eternals” credits.) And the other one, well, has more in common with the goofier post-credits scenes from, say, “The Avengers” (the shawarma scene) or “Spider-Man: Homecoming,” when Captain America (Chris Evans) taught us about the value of patience.
Is it better than the karaoke post-credits scene from “Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings?”
No.