Mads Mikkelsen Sought for ‘Doctor Strange’ Villain

It looks like Dr. Strange is going to have an old friend over for dinner. (Creepy slurping noise.)

Once upon a time, rumors had Hannibal star Mads Mikkelsen up for the title role in Marvel’s Doctor Strange movie. That combination never worked out, and now the film is going into production with Benedict Cumberbatch as Earth’s Sorcerer Supreme, alongside a cast that also includes Chiwetel Ejiofor, Tilda Swinton, and Rachel McAdams. But while Mikkelsen might have missed out on the lead part, he’s reportedly up for an important and villainous role in the film.

Variety has the details (or at least as many as are available at the moment). They report that “Mikkelsen’s exact role remains under wraps, but sources say he will be another antagonist to Cumberbatch’s titular sorcerer.” Ejiofor is already playing Strange’s arch-nemesis Baron Mordo, a fellow student of the Ancient One (Swinton), the wizened wizard who taught both their magic powers. So odds are Mikkelsen is playing Dormammu, the amusingly named “Dread One,” who reigns over the so-called “Dark Dimension” and plots to conquer Earth.

He sounds pretty silly (and frankly he looks pretty silly too) but if anyone can give Dormammu an air of legitimate menace, with our without a flaming head, it’s Mikkelsen. His presence on Hannibal is already otherworldly and evil, so playing a dude from an alternate dimension should be a piece of cake.

Doctor Strange, directed by Scott Derrickson, materializes in theaters on November 4, 2016.