Benedict Cumberbatch calls Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness "genuinely scary"

Benedict Cumberbatch thinks that Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness is “genuinely scary.” In fact, he thinks it just might be the “most frightening” Marvel movie ever, which doesn’t mean that much considering previous MCU releases—but then again this particular film was directed by Evil Dead creator himself, Sam Raimi, so maybe Cumberbatch has a point.

“I think almost definitely it is the most frightening Marvel film of all time,” Cumberbatch tells Esquire Middle East in a new interview. “But I know that doesn’t necessarily put it in the same league as The Shining or of The Exorcism Of Emily Rose.”

Cumberbatch continues, “I would say in [the] compound sense of what little I know is it’s definitely darker in tone, and in terms of advice for taking kids of a certain age, it’s going to be prohibitive for certain people of a certain age because it is scary.”

With Sam Raimi on as director for the sequel, Cumberbatch says he brings a certain flair and horror sensibilities to the Marvel project.

“There’s a lot of shock horror as this is a Sam Raimi film, in tone and execution,” Cumberbatch tells the publication. “There are a lot of his trademark zoom cuts, close-ups and the schlockiness of it as well. It does feel like watching a Sam Raimi film of old at times. There’s a nostalgia kick to that, which I think feels playful at times, as well as dark and quite scary. I wouldn’t say it’s an out-and-out spine-chilling horror film, but there are definitely moments that make you jump, definitely moments that do fit into the horror genre.”

Cumberbatch stars in the feature alongside WandaVision’s Elizabeth Olsen, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Benedict Wong, Xochitl Gomez, Michael Stuhlbarg, and Rachel McAdams. Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness arrives in theaters on May 6.