Preview:
- Marvel has revealed the main cast for ‘Avengers: Doomsday.’
- It’s a mix of returning names and (relatively) new recruits.
- ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ and ‘Avengers: Secret Wars’ are scheduled for release in 2026 and 2027.
While Marvel usually prefers to keep its secrets close (at least, closer than the current government seems to manage), there is also the conflicting compulsion to promote the next movie in its sprawling cinematic universe, ‘Avengers: Doomsday‘.
aulDnGXPFkuVgP2q8dOyT6We’ve known for a while that the Avengers will be back to face the threat of Victor Von Doom (Robert Downey Jr.), but the rest of the cast was largely in the realm of speculation, even for those who have been part of the MCU family for years.
The company used a livestream to confirm who will show up in the new movie, consisting of footage of the backs of director’s chairs featuring the cast names.
Related Article: Joe and Anthony Russo On Keeping ‘Avengers’ Secrets and Robert Downey Jr.’s Input into Dr. Doom
Who is in the cast of ‘Avengers: Doomsday’?
And those names? A mixture of established actors and some of the more recent recruits.
On the longstanding front, we have Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Anthony Mackie as Sam Wilson/Captain America, Sebastian Stan as Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier, Paul Rudd as Scott Lang/Ant-Man (whose chair is amusingly smaller than the others), Letitia Wright as Shuri, Wyatt Russell as John Walker/US Agent (from ‘The Falcon and the Winter Soldier,’ who is back on our screens this year in May 2nd’s ‘Thunderbolts*’), Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova (likewise part of ‘Thunderbolts*’), David Harbour (introduced as Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian in ‘Black Widow’ and who will also recur in ‘Thunderbolts*’). Also from both ‘Ant-Man and the Wasp’ and ‘Thunderbolts*’, Hannah John Kamen as Ava Starr/Ghost.
Alongside Wright, ‘Black Panther’s Winston Duke will be back as M’Baku, and Tom Hiddleston will also return as Loki.
We’re happy to see Simu Liu will return as Shang-Chi, a character who really has deserved a sequel before now. And Danny Ramirez, who was introduced as Joaquim Torres in ‘The Falcon and the Winter Soldier’ and reprised the role in February’s ‘Captain America: Brave New World’ will show up as the new Falcon.
On the recent addition front, there’s Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Joseph Quinn and Pedro Pascal from ‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps,’ which will introduce the iconic team to the MCU on July 25th.
Any surprises? We’re not sure we predicted Tenoch Huerta Mejia –– who played Namor in ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ coming back, but his chair is among the others (not dripping with water –– missed joke opportunity there!).
And Kelsey Grammer, who played Dr. Henry ‘Hank’ McCoy/Beast in Fox Marvel movies ‘X-Men: The Last Stand’ and ‘X-Men: Days of Future Past,’ and cropped up in a cameo as the character in ‘The Marvels,’ is also on the list.
There’s no word yet on whether this means his version of Beast will be the final MCU variant, but with Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Alan Cumming, Rebecca Romijn and James Marsden also announced, the X-Men clearly have a presence. Likewise, Channing Tatum, who made such an impact in ‘Deadpool & Wolverine,’ will be back as Gambit. No sign of Ryan Reynolds or Hugh Jackman, though.
Lewis Pullman, who is introduced as a character called “Bob” (but who has since been revealed to be powerful character Sentry) in ‘Thunderbolts*’ is also listed. So we’re guessing his character –– who also appears to be an antagonist in the movie given the new trailer –– factors in somehow.
Last, but by no means least, the doors to the cavernous soundstage holding all the chairs opens up, and in strides Downey Jr., who sits in his own named chair and puts his finger to his lips. It’s over!
We’re sure there will be other announcements to come –– the company loves to hold back cameos and other roles, so we’ll have to wait and see if Tom Holland or Mark Ruffalo spoil the appearances or if an official press release arrives in due time.
If you’re desperate to see the Livestream, please click on the video player at the top of the page.
The new movie is now kicking off shooting in London, with Marvel veteran directors Joe and Anthony Russo –– who count the giant two previous Avengers outings ‘Infinity War’ and ‘Endgame’ on their shared resume –– back marshalling the chaos that is a team-up movie on this scale.
Joe and Anthony Russo on their return
Speaking to Empire magazine, Anthony revealed that what lured them to return:
“We’re very close with Kevin [Feige] and Lou [D’Esposito, Marvel Studios’ Co-President] and the entire Marvel team and we’ve had conversations through the years. We’ve talked about a lot of ideas. Really what happened was, we ended up stumbling upon a [‘Secret Wars’] idea that activated all of us, you couldn’t see it coming until it came, and once it came it was like, ‘Well, that’s a story we need to tell.’”
And that creative spark extended to regular collaborator Stephen McFeely, who is also back writing the new movies.
While other co-writer Christopher Markus is so far sticking with the Russos’ AGBO company to keep it running, McFeely was tempted back into the MCU machine.
Here’s what Joe told Empire:
“There were ideas that we were trying to wrap our heads around that preceded this one, and we just never found the story. I remember calling Steve and said, ‘Hey, crazy idea. What do you think if we all go back and do Secret Wars?’ He was like, ‘F*** no. Absolutely not.’ And then he hung up. And the next morning at 7.30 he called and were like, ‘Alright, I have an idea…’ ”
‘Avengers: Doomsday’: The Russos talk Robert Downey Jr.
Of course, one of the biggest plot elements for the new movies has already been revealed on Marvel’s terms, with Robert Downey Jr. taking the stage at last year’s San Diego Comic-Con to confirm he’s playing Victor Von Doom.
And according to the directors he’s very involved in helping to shape the character.
This is what they told Entertainment Tonight:
“It’s a very intense process developing the character. He’s so immersed in it. He is so dialed in. That’s the kind of artist he is. That’s the kind of actor he is. He just loves really rich three-dimensional characters and I think he sees a real opportunity here with that character.”
And following ‘Doomsday,’ we’ll see ‘Secret Wars’…
What is Marvel’s ‘Secret Wars’?
‘Secret Wars’ would draw from (through the usual Marvel movie filter where changes will be made) a pair of 1980s comic book series focused on an all-powerful antagonist known as the Beyonder, who in the first installment pitted Marvel’s heroes and villains against each other on a planet known as Battleworld.
In a 2015 revival by Jonathan Hickman, the resulting conflict left the multiverse collapsed, the survivors living on a single planet ruled by classic villain Doctor Doom.
The Russos have previously talked about their enthusiasm for ‘Secret Wars,’ so this one made sense.
When will the next two ‘Avengers’ movies head to screens?
Marvel is planning to have ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ on screens on May 1st, 2026, followed by ‘Avengers: Secret Wars’ on May 7th, 2027.
Upcoming MCU Movies and TV Shows:
- ‘Thunderbolts*‘ (2025)
- ‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps‘ (2025)
- ‘Ironheart‘ (2025)
- ‘Wonder Man‘ (2025)
- ‘Avengers: Doomsday‘ (2026)
- ‘Avengers: Secret Wars‘ (2027)
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