Chiwetel Ejiofor To Play Baron Mordo In 'Doctor Strange'
Oscar nominee Chiwetel Ejiofor will play the sorcerous nobleman Baron Mordo in Marvel's Doctor Strange. The 37-year-old will line up against Benedict Cumberbatch's Doctor, while Tilda Swinton is reportedly in talks to play the Ancient One, a mystical Tibetan mentor whose powers including astral projection, teleportation and energy blasts.
Mordo is traditionally a supervillain in the Doctor Strange comics though Deadline - who first reported the news - suggests his evil tendencies will be toned down in the new movie. The Ancient One is also male in print.
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Due in cinemas in November 2016, Doctor Strange represents Cumberbatch's debut lead role in a major Hollywood production. He plays Dr Stephen Strange, an arrogant neurosurgeon who is transformed into a magically-powered superhero following a car accident.
As well as the movie itself, Cumberbatch's Strange is expected to play a key role in Marvel's new wave of superhero movies: it has nine planned between 2016's Captain America: The Winter Soldier and 2019's The Avengers: Infinity War: Part 2.
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Scott Derrickson, best known for the 2005 horror The Exorcism of Emily Rose, directs Doctor Strange from a screenplay by the Prometheus scribe Jon Spaihts.
Chiwetel Ejiofor, who was Oscar nominated for 12 Years a Slave, has numerous projects on the horizon including Ridley Scott's The Martian, a remake of critically acclaimed Argentinian movie Secret in Their Eyes and John Hillcoat's crime-drama Triple 9, with Aaron Paul, Gal Gadot and Kate Winslet.
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