One of the appeals of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is the fact that there are going to be a LOT of cameos, some of which have already been spoiled or revealed in part. Given the nature of the movie (see: dimension/universe hopping) it’s only natural that cameos happen in such a way.
That being said, there are those who rightfully wonder if the cameos are going to be gratuitous, or, if they’ll truly serve the film’s plot beyond a few key additions. Sam Raimi seemed to have an answer for that:
“I think if that situation appears, sometimes the best answer is to just let the character who’s experiencing this new character react truthfully,” the director said in an interview. “Now, if there was a famous character from another universe that appeared in Multiverse of Madness, I’m not sure that our Doctor Strange would even know who he was; he might blow him off and not make it any big deal at all.
“I think a truthful response can sometimes be the funniest or the most engaging for an audience,” Raimi continued. “You put them in a position like, ‘Man, you don’t know who that guy is? Oh, my God!’ It’s like if some schmo was meeting James Bond onscreen for the first time, and said, ‘Buddy, you’ll have the martini the way I serve it. Get me?’ ‘Don’t you know that’s James Bond?!’ That’s a different kind of fun for the audience to have.”
So Raimi doesn’t seem to be that nervous about it all. But then again, it’s his movie, and he has a certain vision of how it’s going to look and supposed to look. How the fans react to it is going to be a much different thing.
We’ll find out though this Friday whether the “balance” was kept!
Source: Rolling Stone