Sandy Kenyon at New York City premiere of 'Doctor Strange'

NEW YORK (WABC) -- A new comic superhero hits the big screen this weekend.

Actor Benedict Cumberbatch brings to life of one of Marvel's most beloved heroes, Doctor Steven Strange.

Like all movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, expectations are very high for "Doctor Strange." The movie is projected to gross more than $70 million this weekend in the United States and Canada, box-office totals that would put it ahead of "Thor" and "Captain America: The First Avenger."

Spirits were high at the New York premiere Tuesday night. There's no need to check your mind at the door for this film, as "Doctor Strange" looks to capture hearts and minds with its magic.

"He's a doctor first and foremost," said Cumberbatch, in an interview with ABC7NY's Sandy Kenyon on the red carpet. "But he does turn into a superhero. He's flesh and blood, rather than being a Norse god."

The doctor may be about more brains than brawn, but that didn't mean Cumberbatch could take it easy in the gym.

"I was pretty big," he said. "Did a lot of work to get that...like seven months!"

"Dr. Strange" and all of the hoopla that comes with the launch of a Marvel movie is a game-changer for the actor who earned an Oscar nomination for playing a mathematician in "The Imitation Game."

The son of two actors, Cumberbatch became a TV star as "Sherlock." But he never envisioned playing a superhero.

"It's kind of like the dream I never had come true," he said. "Because it is amazing, and it's great fun to play a superhero, but I never thought, yeah I definitely need to play a superhero one day. It just kind of happened."

Cumberbatch was joined by his wife, Sophie Hunter, who is expecting the couple's second child. The actor said he has learned to separate his public and private lives.

"I live as normal a life as I can under the circumstances," he said.

"Doctor Strange" comes from Disney's Marvel Studios, owned by the same parent company as ABC7NY.

Stay tuned to ABC7NY for a full review Friday, for the best Marvel flick since "Guardians of the Galaxy."