Matthew McConaughey, Jake Gyllenhaal, And Oscar Isaac Also On ‘Doctor Strange’ Shortlist
For a while there, it looked like theDoctor Strangecasting rumors were finally coming to a rest. ThenJoaquin Phoenixdecided hedidn’t want to do the movieafter all. That sent Marvel back to square one, and the rest of us gossiping and speculating all over again about who might get the part.
A couple weeks ago, we got wordEthan Hawkewasup for the role, and yesterday we heardEwan McGregorwasbeing looked atas well. Now a new report reveals several more names on the shortlist:Matthew McConaughey,Jake Gyllenhaal,Oscar Isaac, andJared Leto(again). Hit the jump for all the latestDoctor Strangeshortlist.
As for the others:
Execs want a star for the role, and McConaughey definitely fits that criteria. He’s emerged from the McConnaisance a freshly minted Oscar winner with A-list name recognition. In fact, he might even betoobig for Marvel — fittingDoctor Strangeinto McConaughey’s busy schedule will be a challenge — but the studio figures if they could get Phoenix in talks, they can get just about anyone else to at least hear them out.
Gyllenhaal is the youngest on the current shortlist, but he’s still within the mid-30s-to-mid-40s range that Marvel seems interested in. He’s apparently quite keen to take on a superhero role after coming close in the early 2000s with Sony’sSpider-Manfranchise. Recently, Gyllenhaal has been racking up compliments in darker pics likeEnd of Watch,Prisoners,Enemy, andNightcrawler.
Isaac is the least well known of the six right now, but that’ll change in a big way whenStar Wars Episode VIIcomes out. Since that’s also a Disney production, the studio is in prime position to snap him up for another franchise before he really blows up big. He’s an excellent actor who consistently makes the most of whatever he’s in, fromSucker PunchtoInside Llewyn Davis.
While theDoctor Strangelead is still up in the air, the director and release date are not.Scott Derricksonis directingDoctor Strangefor release onJuly 8, 2016.
