With all the success Marvel is having with their recent advertising campaign for 'Guardians of the Galaxy,' it appears that audiences are ready for phase three of Marvel's movies, which means meeting some of the weirder and more obscure characters from their collection. It can't get much odder than 'Doctor Strange,' and he appears to be next on the docket as Marvel has a shortlist of directors for the project.

The Hollywood Reporter has the exclusive that Mark Andrews, Nikolaj Arcel, Dean Israelite, and Jonathan Levine are the four directors who have a shot at bringing the good 'Doctor' to the big screen. None of these are household names, but the most successful of the lot is Andrews, who was one of the directors behind Pixar's 'Brave,' while many nerds know Levine as the man behind the long delayed 'All the Girls Love Mandy Lane,' and last year's rom-zom-com 'Warm Bodies.' Arcel is the Oscar nominated writer/director behind 'A Royal Affair,' while Israelite directed 'Welcome to Yesterday,' the found footage time-travel film which Paramount delayed indefinitely.

THR also notes that 'Kung Fu Panda' writers Jon Aibel and Glenn Berger are in the mix to write the screenplay. As for this collection of filmmakers, it suggests that Marvel is continuing their efforts to make choices outside the box, and none of these filmmakers come across as indifferent or uninteresting. As Marvel pushes forward their confidence and their faith in talented artists is awe inspiring... At least until Rob Cohen directs a Marvel movie.

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