Rumors about which actor might step into the role of Marvel's "Doctor Strange" have been floating around for some time—will it be Benedict Cumberbatch? Tom Hardy? Jared Leto?! According to The Wrap, the answer could be none of the above.

The Wrap reports that, though "insiders caution there is no deal in place yet," they have heard from multiple sources that Joaquin Phoenix has had "discussions" about the role, and is in consideration. From The Wrap:

Many would assume that Phoenix is one of the last actors in Hollywood who would be willing to lock himself into a potential long-term deal, but it's possible that he's not being asked to sign the same staggering multi-picture contract that other actors in the MCU have.

Phoenix was previously in discussions for the role of Lex Luthor in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice—a role that eventually went to Jesse Eisenberg—and, according to The Wrap, "it's believed that those talks would not have gotten as far as they did if Phoenix had no interest in doing a comic book movie."

Hmm. Fair enough!

[image via Getty]