Marvel has not yet announced a release date for the Scott Derrickson-directed Doctor Strange movie. Though, with Comic Con ahead and an expansive slate schedule d, an announcement is likely imminent.

What to Expect From Marvel's Upcoming Slate

Fans are already speculating that Doctor Strange may show up in an Avengers film, perhaps Avengers 3 (though that will no doubt depend on the success of his solo outing). Alternatively, some have wondered if it might ever make sense for Marvel to create a character franchise that exists entirely unto itself.

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"It does make sense [to have standalone franchises], but I don't think it makes sense for this character, who has clearly woven in and out of that stuff [The Avengers] in the comics," Marvel head Kevin Feige told IGN when we spoke to him in advance of the release of Guardians of the Galaxy recently. "We have a template. There's a template for everything we do, which are the comics. Strange goes back and forth. Guardians less so, actually, until recently. But if there's a character like that who clearly interweaves over the course of many stories, I find no reason to go, 'We're not going to do that in the movies. We're going to keep him in his own movies.' So there's always the potential for it [Strange to join The Avengers]."As to when we might hear some casting news for the character, Feige says "relatively quickly.""I don't know if it'll be as quick as next Saturday," he added. "But it'll be relatively quickly."

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With the possible addition of new characters, it begins to look as if - down the line - the Avengers films may reflect the comics in that from one film to the next, we may see an entirely new lineup of heroes.

"Certainly that has been the case with the comics, right?" Feige said when asked if the Marvel Cinematic Universe was headed in that direction. "Go into the comic bin and pull up any Avengers issue from 1960-whatever and 1980-whatever, and they probably don't match. I think that's fun. That's one of the reasons why Wanda and Pietro [Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch] have shown up in the new Avengers film, because we like the notion of a shifting roster, of a growing roster."Stay tuned for all things Marvel.

Roth Cornet is an Entertainment Editor for IGN. You can follow her on Twitter at @RothCornet and IGN at Roth-IGN