Director Scott Derrickson Says He Originally Had A Different Villain In Mind For 'Doctor Strange'

**Spoilers ahead** With big blockbusters, many things can change over time as the script is worked out, and that’s certainly true for Marvel. The hugely successful company tends to turn over lots of ideas for each movie, before they are smoothed out and the project goes into production. And particularly for “Doctor Strange,” the first entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe for the character, there were likely all kinds of directions Kevin Feige and co. could have taken — and indeed, at one time there was a different villain in mind for our hero to face.

In the film, Doctor Strange battles Mads Mikkelsen‘s Kaecilius before eventually facing the giant CGI head of Dormammu. The film already is loaded with exposition to explain all of Doctor Strange’s mystical powers, the various dimensions he can traverse, and more, and it seems Feige nixed an idea to use the villain Nightmare because it would’ve required more explanations to the audience.

READ MORE: The Best & Worst Of ‘Doctor Strange’

“Kevin [Feige] made a very cogent case. The trouble with starting with Nightmare is getting across the idea of the Dream Dimension as another dimension. The movie was challenging enough. It’s already an exposition-heavy movie… Dormammu made the most sense. And he is the most present villain in the comics,” director Scott Derrickson explained in an extended conversation with Empire.

And that quote shows why Feige is one of the most successful producers in the game at the moment. I think he’s bang-on in assessing that tossing in the Dream Dimension would’ve been a step too far (and perhaps one page too many borrowed from Christopher Nolan‘s “Inception” handbook). But at the rate the movie is currently performing, perhaps they can bring the character into the inevitable sequel for “Doctor Strange.” [via io9]