Warning! Spoilers ahead for Spider-Man: No Way Home.

Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) made a catastrophic lapse in judgment in Spider-Man: No Way Home, but it's actually the reason why he is the best candidate to be the next leader of the Avengers. After the events of the Infinity Saga, some of the MCU's founding heroes are no longer on active duty, including the Avengers' co-leaders, Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) and Captain America (Chris Evans). So, the team is currently on the hunt for a new head, and Doctor Strange is among the few candidates who could eventually assume the position. 

With Tony Stark no longer around to provide help, Peter Parker (Tom Holland) reached out to Doctor Strange after his secret identity as Spider-Man was revealed by Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal) in Spider-Man: Far From Home. Having worked closely together in Avengers: Infinity War, the sorcerer was the only other active hero in the MCU who the wall-crawler could rely on. Luckily, Doctor Strange was eager to help him undo Quentin Beck's malicious revelation. The spell that was supposed to make everyone forget about Peter's ties to Spider-Man, however, went awry; not only did it not work, but it also inadvertently exposed Earth to various multiversal threats. 

Related: Why Doctor Strange Didn't Use The Memory Spell On Thanos In Infinity War

By the end of No Way Home, the pair was able to rectify the situation by sending all of the interdimensional villains such as Alfred Molina's Doc Ock and Willem Dafoe's Green Goblin to their own universes. But while Peter was partly to blame for what happened, Doctor Strange should arguably be more accountable for it since he should've known better than to cast a dangerous spell — something that Wong (Benedict Wong) even cautioned him about. Despite this lapse in judgment, it actually makes a good case for why Doctor Strange should be the next Avengers leader. Each previous head of the MCU superhero team proved that they were willing to bend rules and go against expectations for the sake of the greater good and/or the benefit of a fellow hero. Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), Iron Man, and Captain America all, at one point, stood their ground for something they truly believed in. 

For what it's worth, Doctor Strange eventually became frustrated over Peter's repeated attempts to change the terms of the original memory spell and his stubbornness with wanting to save the villains from their supposed deaths. This caused a brief conflict between the heroes, but the sorcerer's annoyance was understandable considering what Doctor Strange knows about the multiverse — and how dangerous it can be, especially if there's a collapse. Despite all this, he still gave Spider-Man wiggle room to finish his personal goal of rehabilitating the interdimensional villains before sending them back to their respective universes. By the end of Spider-Man: No Way Home, when Peter finally agreed to wipe out his identity to keep the multiverse from being torn apart, Doctor Strange became quite emotional, knowing that he would no longer have any recollection of their time together. This indicates that in the short time that they've known each other, he'd become genuinely concerned about Spider-Man — yet another reason why the sorcerer would be an effective Avengers head. 

Marvel Studios is in no rush to build towards Avengers 5, however; in fact, the film hasn't even been officially announced, meaning it could be a few years away. At this point, it's even uncertain who will be a part of the team, especially after Peter's fate after Spider-Man: No Way Home. But, as MCU Phase 4 continues with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, it's possible that the sorcerer will rise to lead the next Avengers roster. 

More: Spider-Man: No Way Home Repeats Endgame’s Iron Man Tragedy In Reverse

Key Release Dates