Marvel has been laying hints about its plans to tap the stories of Sorcerer Supreme Doctor Strange for a while now, with references including one direct mention of the character in Captain America: The Winter Soldier and plenty of talk from the team behind the films. Things finally appear to be moving forward, as Sinister and **The Exorcism Of Emily Rose director Scott Derrickson is now in the director’s chair.
My next movie will be STRANGE: [pic.twitter.com/5pdbO6Op6j](http://t.co/5pdbO6Op6j) > > — Scott Derrickson (@scottderrickson) [June 3, 2014](https://twitter.com/scottderrickson/statuses/473948123702628354)
**Doctor Strange **was originally conjured from the brains of Stan Lee and art genius Steve Ditko, and began life as a selfish New York surgeon (named Stephen Strange) who loses his professional skills in a car crash. After falling on hard times, he visits a healer in the Himalayas known as The Ancient One, and learns to tap into psychic powers. In recognition of his selfless efforts to thwart evil fellow disciple Baron Mordo, he’s taught the mystical arts and sets out to defeat other shady sorcerers and various villains.
Derrickson, who was not among the list of potential camera wranglers rumoured back in February, brings experience with both low and big budget fare. He’s found success with the Blumhouse family making supernatural chillers and made his name co-writing and directing The Exorcism Of Emily Rose. He took a stab at larger-scale films with his remake of The Day The Earth Stood Still, so he certainly has a grasp of hefty effects work - although we'll be hoping for something a bit more fun than that.
Assuming a script is in place (whether or not Derrickson is offered a shot at re-writing it), the next big step will be in finding someone to play the main character. We made some suggestions here.