Doctor Strange introduced the audience to the Ancient One, and she was named like that for a reason – so, how old was she? In over 10 years, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has brought various characters from Marvel Comics to the big screen, of which some had already had some not-so-good experiences with live-action movies. Such was the case of Doctor Strange, who joined the MCU in 2016 after being casually referenced in Captain America: The Winter Soldier two years earlier.

Doctor Strange told the origin story of the title hero, neurosurgeon Stephen Strange, who after a car accident that left his hands severely injured, went on a journey to find a cure, only to discover that his hands weren’t the problem. Strange ended up on a journey of self-discovery in Kamar-Taj and with the Ancient One (Tilda Swinton) as a mentor, who trained him in the mystic arts. The Ancient One was the Sorcerer Supreme and the leader of the Masters of the Mystic Arts, but everything about her was a mystery, even to her most loyal apprentices, and the biggest question about her life is her real age.

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At the time of the events of Doctor Strange, the Ancient One was the latest in a long line of Sorcerers Supreme whose purpose is to defend the Earth from different mystical threats. She wasn’t named “Ancient One” for the drama, and Karl Mordo mentioned that her exact age was a mystery, and as she never spoke of her past, it was pretty much impossible for those around her to even try to deduce how old she really was. Some fans have taken the time to calculate the Ancient One’s age based on a couple of details in the dialogues of Doctor Strange, such as Mordo saying she “drew on [the Dark Dimension’s] power to steal centuries of life”, so she would have been, at least, 200 years old and no older than 1000.

Avengers ancient one

Kevin Feige told Birthmoviesdeath (via Bustle) in 2015 that the Ancient One “has been around for five hundred years”, so fans weren’t too far from the real number. Luckily, Doctor Strange screenwriter Jon Spaihts actually offered an answer to the question of how old the Ancient One was in an interview with Vulture in 2016. In it, when talking about the Ancient One, her death, and casting Tilda Swinton, he said that “she is a mystical being who’s 700 years old”, and that’s the number that many sites dedicated to collecting all details about the MCU have taken as her official age. Of course, Doctor Strange wasn’t the last time viewers got to see the Ancient One in action, as she made one more appearance in Avengers: Endgame, in an alternate 2012 timeline where she met the Hulk as he tried to take the Time Stone.

The Ancient One’s name truly had a meaning, and Mordo wasn’t lying when he said she had been around for centuries. Whether the Ancient One will make another (surprise?) appearance in future MCU movies, specifically Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, is unknown, but what’s for sure is that Strange and the rest still have a lot to learn from her, even if she’s not (physically) around anymore.

Next: Why Doctor Strange 2 Shouldn't Bring Back The Ancient One

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