Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness: Who Are The Members Of Marvel's Illuminati?

Now just over three months away from its release, the already considerable hype around Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness has grown with the release of the film's second trailer. Aside from a closer look at Wanda Maximoff's role in the film, as well as Steven Strange variants such as Defender and Sinister Strange, one of the most talked about moments in the trailer in which Strange is brought before a mysterious group, supposedly to answer for his multiverse-breaking actions in Spider-Man: No Way Home, and a voice declares:

"We should tell him the truth."

Fans are convinced that the voice belongs to Sir Patrick Stewart, who is rumoured to be appearing in the film, reprising his role of Professor Charles Xavier from Fox's X-Men films. The mysterious group is believed to be a take on Marvel's Illuminati.

In the comics, the Illuminati forms after the events of the Kree-Skrull war, to oversee and share information on events in the prime Marvel-616 universe. Fans now speculate that Multiverse of Madness will provide a twist on this, with the Illuminati instead acting as overseers of the Multiverse.

Let's take a look at all the main members of the Illuminati from the comics, and how likely they are to appear in Multiverse of Madness.

Tony Stark, aka Iron Man

The seeds of what became Marvel's Illuminati were sewn by Tony Stark, aka Iron Man. Following the events of the Kree-Skrull War, Tony calls together the leaders of the various major factions of the Marvel uuniverse (X-Men, Inhumans, etc) for a meeting in Wakanda. He points out that every person present posesses knowledge that could have prevented the war, if only they had been able to work together and share what they knew. Tony then proposes a super-human 'United Nations' style governing body be formed to deal with similar preventable disasters in the future.

Everyone vetoed the United Nations idea for various valid reasons, including a mistrust of some facets of the superhero community from human Governments, but most agreed to continued secret meetings to share information. Tony Stark was usually the one to call these meetings. Notable occasions include the continued Skrull threat, and a meeting in which it was decided to send the Hulk into space following a Las Vegas rampage.

If Iron Man does appear in the Multiverse of Madness Illuminati, fans believe it will be a variant version, rumoured to be played by Tom Cruise.

Professor Charles Xavier

Professor Charles Xavier, aka Professor X, attended Stark's initial meeting as both a representative of the X-Men and the wider Mutant community. One of his most notable acts as a member of the Illuminati was a failed attempt to telepathically render the Beyonder's kidnapped victims unconscious in the hope of preventing any loss of life in the 'Secret Wars' event. He was not present for the decision to send The Hulk away from Earth, but when later confronted by Hulk on the matter, claims he would have agreed to it, albeit only as a temporary measure until a cure for the Hulk's rampages could be found. When Professor X is believed dead in the aftermath of the 'Avengers vs X-Men' event, Beast briefly takes his place in the Illuminati.

As mentioned above, fans are convinced that Professor X will be a member of the MCU Illuminati, with Patrick Stewart reprising the role. Some fans also believe X's friend/rival Magneto will appear, possibly taking the Illuminati seat of a character not yet present in the MCU.

Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic

Reed Richards attends the meeting in Wakanda as the representative of 'Marvel's First Family', the Fantastic Four. While Reed, aka Mister Fantastic, believes Iron Man's initial plan of a superhero governing body would leave them all too caught up in bearaucracy to actually help people, he agrees to the need to share information to prevent another disaster like the Kree-Skrull war.

In one storyline, Richards convinces the other Illuminati members to gather the Infinity Stones, with a plan to use the stones' own power to will them out of existence. When this doesn't work, an embarrassed Richards divides the Stones among the Illuminati for safe keeping.

Opinions are mixed on what version of Reed Richards, if any, we will see in Multiverse of Madness. While some rumours suggest fan favourite John Krasinski has been cast, others state Ioan Gruffud may be reprising his role as Reed from Fox's first two Fantastic Four films.

Namor the Submariner

Namor the Submariner, King of Atlantis, attends Stark's meeting as a representative of his people. Namor is well known for his desire to keep Atlantis's affairs separate from the rest of Earth, and rejects Stark's original plan due to his distrust of heroes who used to be villains, such as Hawkeye and Quicksilver. However, he reluctantly acknowledges that there are times when a group such as the Illuminati could prove to be useful.

Unfortunately, Namor eventually fell out with the rest of the Illuminati over their plans to banish the Hulk to a distant planet. He is disgusted with their decision to send their friend and ally before being sure they had done all they could to cure Bruce Banner of The Hulk, and says that all they will accomplish is making The Hulk bitter and vengeful. Namor's relationship with the rest of the Illuminati is irreparably shattered, and worse, he is proven right when The Hulk returns to Earth, seeking revenge on the Illuminati in the 'World War Hulk' storyline.

Currently, Namor is rumoured to appear in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Some fans believe his appearance was teased in Endgame, when Okoye informs Natasha of odd underwater activity around Wakanda. It is possible the character could have a cameo in Multiverse of Madness before officially joining the MCU in Wakanda Forever.

Black Bolt

Black Bolt, King of the Inhuman homeworld of Attilan, attends Stark's meeting as the representative of the Inhumans. Shortly after the Illuminati is formed, the group travels to the Skrull homeworld in the hope that they can talk them out of another attack, but the attempt failed, and the group was captured. They escape, but not before the Skrulls analysed the physiology, genetics and behaviour of each Illuminati member. This event comes back to haunt them years later, leading to the beginning of the 'Secret Invasion'.

When Tony calls the Illuminati together to expose a Skrull who had been posing as Elektra Natchios, Black Bolt reveals himself to also be a Skrull, with the real Black Bolt having been captured sometime earlier. While the Illuminati defeat the impostor, they find themselves unable to work together during 'Secret Invasion', the trust between them having been shattered. The real Black Bolt is rescued along with other captured heroes towards the end of the storyline.

Black Bolt and the Inhumans have a rather complicated history within the MCU. A planned movie based on the characters was scrapped in favour of a TV series. The series, in which Black Bolt was played by Anson Mount, was poorly received, being cancelled after just one season. While some rumours suggest Mount could be reprising his role as Black Bolt or a variant thereof in Multiverse of Madness, many fans believe that he is the Illuminati member most likely to be replaced with an alternate character such as Magneto.

Doctor Strange

Doctor Steven Strange attends Stark's first meeting as the representative of Sorcerors and other mystical forces within the Marvel universe. While he fears Tony's original plan of a Superhero governing body would prove difficult due to the number of heroes with anti-establishment leanings, but agrees with the need to share information that could prevent future events like the Kree-Skrull war.

After learning that The Hulk has returned for revenge on the Illuminati for their decision to banish him from Earth, Strange allows himself to be possessed by a Demon spirit, Zom, in the hope of defeating The Hulk before too much damage is caused. This plan backfires when Strange loses control and almost kills innocent civilians. The Hulk rescues said civilians, leaving Strange's confidence in his powers, and decision to banish The Hulk, severely shaken.

While the MCU's main Doctor Strange is clearly not a member of the Illuminati, at least not yet, some fans believe one of the Strange variants set to appear in Multiverse of Madness, most likely Defender Strange, will be a member of the group.

Check out the new trailer for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, and possibly a little glimpse at the MCU Illuminati, here: