Yesterday brought a new full-length trailer for upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe animated show What If…?, based on the long-running comic book series of the same name that imagines how major events in the franchise could have turned out with one or two small but hugely significant differences, and the latest promo may have hinted towards a potential Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness villain.
Even though the Sorcerer Supreme’s sequel is just eight months away from hitting theaters, we still don’t know who the big bad of Sam Raimi’s mystical blockbuster is going to be, even if a lot of fingers are being pointed in the direction of Elizabeth Olsen’s Scarlet Witch following the events of WandaVision, although we’ll have a much better idea of where things are headed once December’s Spider-Man: No Way Home arrives.
However, as you can see below, during the episode of What If…? where Peggy Carter becomes a super soldier at the expense of Steve Rogers, we catch a glimpse of an obscure cult favorite that’s been rumored in the past as a potential foe for Benedict Cumberbatch to overcome in Multiverse of Madness.
Shuma-Gorath is essentially an inter-dimensional octopus with serious anger issues, and a demon with supernatural powers that’s ruled over countless realities dating back hundreds of thousands of years certainly sounds weird enough for whatever Raimi has been cooking up, with writer Michael Waldron saying the movie will be hugely reflective of the filmmaker’s sensibilities. As his filmography has shown on numerous occasions, Raimi is no stranger to all sorts of weird and wonderful creatures, so it can’t be ruled out that Shuma-Gorath will show up in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, if even for a short spell.