After months of rumors claiming that Patrick Stewart would return to his Professor X role for Doctor Strange 2, Marvel finally seemed to confirm his return. The second Multiverse of Madness trailer offers the kind of cameo reveal that any fan would instantly recognize. At one point in the trailer, Patrick Stewart’s unmistakable voice is heard, just as Ultron sentries bring in Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch).
Patrick Stewart’s unseen character asks the others whether they should tell the truth to the MCU’s Strange variant before them. That’s enough for any X-Men and MCU fan — and any Star Trek fan — to recognize Patrick Stewart’s timbre. However, the actor isn’t ready to admit to anything. If anything, Stewart just started teaching a masterclass in MCU denials, one that Andrew Garfield and Charlie Cox should consider attending. Mind you, some MCU spoilers might follow below.
The No Way Home denials
While rumors said last fall that Patrick Stewart would appear in Doctor Strange 2, No Way Home rumors dominated that period. Despite many data points that offered irrefutable evidence that Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield, and Charlie Cox would appear in the Spider-Man adventure, everyone kept denying it.
Well, Maguire did not have to lie to the press, as he didn’t appear in any movie tours before No Way Home came out.
But Garfield and Cox had to address the rumors repeatedly in interviews promoting other projects. Garfield’s denials stood out, as he was rumored to play one of the three Spider-Man variants in the films. And he denied his involvement time and again, although we could hardly believe him. Cox’s denials weren’t any better, although he only had a brief cameo in No Way Home.
Fast-forward to mid-February, and it’s Patrick Stewart’s time to deny an MCU cameo. And that’s despite the unmistakable Stewart voice that Marvel featured in the Doctor Strange 2 Super Bowl trailer (below).
You’d think that Stewart would deliver some sort of acknowledgment that he agreed to reprise his Charles Xavier/Professor X role despite claiming he wouldn’t do it again after Logan. But the actor did none of that. Instead, he brilliantly denied the speculation, providing a hilarious reason why his voice is in the trailer.
Patrick Stewart’s Doctor Strange 2 cameo denial is next level
“You know, people have been imitating my voice ever since I came on the stage 60 years ago,” Stewart told ComicBook while promoting Star Trek: Picard. “So, I can’t be held responsible for that.”
This is absolutely a fantastic reaction from Patrick Stewart. Rather than denying he’s Professor X in Doctor Strange 2 and skirting around explaining how such an event is possible, he implies that Marvel might have hired someone else to spoof his voice. But it gets better.
In a separate interview, he dodged the same question differently. Talking to Kevin McCarthy, the actor said he “was just at home waiting to watch football.”
“So, how could it possibly have been me?” he asked rhetorically. “We’ll have to wait and see, won’t we?”
Again, this absolutely checks out. Everybody knows that you can’t be in two places at the same time. Like, say, your home and a pre-recorded trailer airing on TV. You can check the full exchange below.
With all that in mind, Patrick Stewart denying his Doctor Strange 2 cameo can only drum up more excitement. Multiverse of Madness hits theaters on May 6th, which gives Professor X plenty of time to mess with our minds.
