Scott Derrickson Says Walking Away From Doctor Strange 2 Was Most Difficult Decision Of His Career

There is no way to deny that Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness has been a psychedelic trip to success for Marvel Studios and director Sam Raimi. While there has been a lot for Raimi fans to enjoy in the latest MCU blockbuster, it could have been very different if original director Scott Derrickson had remained at the helm. Although there were certain things already in place when Raimi was drafted in to replace Derrickson, Raimi’s style of filmmaking is all over the movie. Now Derrickson, who directed 2016’s Doctor Strange but left the sequel over “creative differences,” has called the choice to step away one of the most difficult choices he has ever made.

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Scott Derrickson seemed like the perfect choice to make the MCU’s first “horror movie,” having helmed Doctor Strange’s debut movie and also directed terrifying cinematic offerings such as Sinister and The Exorcism of Emily Rose. However, not long into the production schedule of Multiverse of Madness, Derrickson left the project in what he has now addressed as “the hardest decision of my career.” In a new interview with Empire magazine, Derrickson explained that in the end, the decision was more about his personal mental well-being than the movie. He said:

Instead of continuing with Multiverse of Madness, Derrickson moved on to co-write and direct The Black Phone, a film based on a short story by Joe Hill that he described as his “most personal film yet.” It centers on the kind of serial killer violence that was almost the norm in his childhood, thanks to the likes of the Mansons and Ted Bundy. Derrickson even recalled a friend whose mother was “abducted, raped, wrapped in a phone cord and thrown in the local lake.”

“I’d been in therapy for a number of years dealing with early childhood trauma. I grew up in a violent neighborhood and in a violent household. Everybody got beat with a belt — or worse. There was a lot of bleeding and fights, to and from school. Ever-present violence was the nature of that blue-collar neighborhood.”

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Although the departure of anyone from a big production always comes with lots of rumors and speculation about disagreements on set between cast and crew, Derrickson is quick to make sure everyone knows that there was no animosity at all around his parting ways with Marvel Studios, something that should already be apparent from his public comments and praise for the movie. He said to Empire:

With early comments suggesting that Derrickson’s The Black Phone is a movie that will undoubtedly leave a lasting mark on those who see it, the film’s release on June 24 will be one to remember for horror fans. Meanwhile, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is about to become the highest-grossing movie of the year so far as it continues to enchant audiences at the worldwide box office.

“Contrary to gossip, it was all really amicable [when I left] and I’d work there again. I’m going to the premiere [of Multiverse of Madness] and I’m really looking forward to it, but I feel like I made the right decision. I’ve made the movie I was meant to make, at the time I was meant to make it.”