I’m so excited for Avengers: Doomsday. Here’s what we know about the film

By Anthony Orlando Updated January 14, 2026

The premiere of Avengers: Doomsday, Marvel Studios’s fifth Avengers film, is less than a year away, and the hype is palpable. With so much buildup in the Marvel Cinematic Universe throughout the Multiverse Saga, this crossover superhero film aims to be one of the biggest blockbusters of 2026.

Fans can expect to see a star-studded, action-packed, world-shattering epic in Doomsday, which is gearing up to shake up the entire MCU. Here’s everything confirmed about Avengers: Doomsday so far.

Avengers: Doomsday is scheduled to premiere on December 18, 2026. The movie was initially scheduled for May 2, 2025, but it was delayed to May 1, 2026. It was then pushed back to December 17, 2026, giving the filmmakers more time to work on the movie.

Now, with the release set for December 18, Avengers: Doomsday will come out the same day as Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part Three. As a result, fans have hyped this simultaneous release, aptly titled “Dunesday,” as another double-feature phenomenon akin to “Barbenheimer.”

Having directed both Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame for Marvel Studios, blockbuster filmmakers Anthony and Joe Russo have returned to direct Avengers: Doomsday. The screenplay will be written by Michael Waldron (Loki) and Stephen McFeely (Infinity War, Endgame).

Alan Silvestri will return to compose the score for this new Avengers film. Frequent Marvel film editor Jeffrey Ford will also work on Doomsday. Newton Thomas Sigel will serve as the cinematographer, having worked on films like The Usual Suspects and several of Fox’s X-Men films.

This is quite a list of stars, and these are just the actors who have been revealed so far. Characters like Spider-Man, Doctor Strange, Hawkeye, Deadpool, Wolverine, and the Hulk could make an appearance, but that has yet to be confirmed.

It has been rumored that Tobey Maguire will reprise his role as Peter Parker from Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man films, having already done so in Spider-Man: No Way Home. Since Tom Holland’s variant of Parker may not have a huge role in Doomsday after Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Maguire could help fill the void by appearing as his version of the webslinger.

A video on X of a Disney event in Italy revealed that, like Infinity War, the film’s massive cast will be divided into multiple teams. There’s the “Heroic Avengers,” which is led by Sam Wilson and includes Thor, Shang-Chi, Falcon, and Loki. There’s also the “Wakandan Warriors,” which features Shuri, M’Baku, and Namor.

Just as Robert Downey Jr. is returning to the MCU, it looks like Chris Evans will return to play Steve Rogers/Captain America. The hero was last seen in Avengers: Endgame, going back in time to return the Infinity Stones to their points of origin, only to go further into the past to marry his true love, Peggy Carter.

While this seemed like a happy ending for Rogers, the reality of it may be far darker than we thought. Doom reportedly has a vendetta against Rogers for messing with history, as it has been rumored that the latter inadvertently caused an Incursion by time-traveling, destroying Doom’s universe and killing his family.

If this is true, then it would make Doomsday a more direct sequel to Endgame, as Rogers would have to face the consequences of his actions. Though he had good intentions, Rogers could have ultimately ended trillions of lives and unleashed an even greater threat to his universe than Thanos. It would also make his rivalry with Doom a parallel to his uneasy relationship with Tony Stark, especially since Robert Downey Jr. plays both characters.

No official synopsis has been released for Avengers: Doomsday, but the story is set to take place fourteen months after the events of Thunderbolts*. The cast list suggests that the Avengers, the New Avengers, the Fantastic Four, and the X-Men will face off against Doctor Doom.

Given the MCU’s current saga has been all about the Multiverse, it is likely Doomsday will feature the fallout of stories like Spider-Man: No Way Home, Loki, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, and Deadpool & Wolverine. As several heroes and villains have tampered with realities throughout the Multiverse, Doomsday may finally reap what they have sown.

Based on the film’s title, Avengers: Doomsday will likely feature a dark ending, similar to that of Avengers: Infinity War. According to Kristian Harloff, the film will show three versions of Earth colliding to create Battleworld, the setting of Avengers: Secret Wars.

Principal photography for the film began on April 28, 2025, at Pinewood Studios in the United Kingdom. Filming is also said to have occurred in Bahrain and Windsor Great Park. Filming wrapped on September 19, but The Hollywood Reporter claimed that a “healthy dose of additional photography” will occur later on.

Marvel has conducted reshoots for its films on multiple occasions, reworking their scripts after principal photography ended. Given the number of prominent actors they have in mind for this film, it is possible that shooting will resume later on to accommodate the talent’s busy schedules. As we anticipate more actors joining Doomsday‘s massive cast, filming may begin again once these new actors are available and willing to star in the movie.

For years, fans have wondered how Marvel Studios will introduce the X-Men to the MCU. With the advent of the Multiverse, it appears that the MCU will feature at least one version of the X-Men from an alternate universe in Avengers: Doomsday.

At this point, it’s unknown whether they will hail from Earth-10005, the reality in which Fox’s X-Men films and Deadpool & Wolverine took place. However, it is likely they will be from the universe Monica Rambeau woke up in at the end of The Marvels, given it featured Kelsey Grammer playing Beast.

Cyclops and the Summers Family will reportedly be a major focus in Avengers: Doomsday. This suggests that Scott will be a husband to Jean Grey and a father in this film, much like his counterpart in the hit animated series X-Men ’97.

This is welcome news, as Fox’s X-Men films put a massive spotlight on Wolverine that overshadowed the relationship between Scott and Jean. Avengers: Doomsday could finally give these characters the cinematic treatment they deserve by showing them as a loving family and as the X-Men’s leading figures.

That being said, actor Famke Janssen told Entertainment Weekly that Marvel never asked her to reprise her role as Jean Grey in Avengers: Doomsday. Although Janssen could have fibbed to avoid spoiling the film, Marvel Studios may not have called her yet. The filmmakers allegedly didn’t have a finished script during production. They could’ve decided to include Jean more recently as they were figuring out the story.

In addition, scooper James Mack claimed on X that the film will feature some of the X-Men’s greatest adversaries: the Sentinels. He also states that these mutant-hunting robots will be controlled by Doctor Doom using magic runes based on several alleged concept sketches for the film. Doom has always liked having an army of robots fight for him.

While this is all very exciting, there have been whispers that Avengers: Doomsday will be Patrick Stewart’s last film as Professor X and his final acting role, period. This suggests that Professor X will be killed off again in Doomsday and won’t appear in Avengers: Secret Wars. Though Stewart can’t play the Professor forever, it is bittersweet to think the legendary thespian will take a final bow in this film.

At this point in the MCU, very little is known about its version of Doctor Doom. In an interview with ET, Joe Russo revealed that Robert Downey Jr. has created his own backstory and costume ideas for Doom’s three-dimensional character. Actor Simu Liu assured fans in an interview with The River that Downey’s portrayal of Doom will leave them in awe.

In the comics, Doom is the King of Latveria and a rival of Reed Richards. After an experiment with his and Reed’s interdimensional portal went wrong, Doom was left with a scarred face. Blaming Reed for the accident, he sought vengeance against him with his knowledge of science and sorcery, all while pursuing world domination in order to bring order to humanity.

However, like with Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War, Doomsday will reportedly depict Doom as the protagonist of his own story. Doom will likely spend the movie trying to rectify a perceived problem with the Multiverse in an extreme manner. While the MCU seemed to have been building up to another Multiversal War with variants of Kang, it now seems Doom will either be the one who starts or ends it.

Doom’s plan seems to have begun at the end of The Fantastic Four: First Steps, in which he appeared before Franklin Richards, Sue Storm and Reed Richards’ son, in Earth-828. He could have kidnapped the child and fled to Earth-616 in the Fantastic Four’s ship, as shown at the end of Thunderbolts*.

This film left many things about Doom a mystery. In the mid-credits scene of First Steps, we don’t even get a good look at Doom, as his back is turned to the camera, with his unmasked face hidden behind his green hood. However, some alleged promotional artwork of the MCU’s Doom was leaked from the Disney 2026 Merchandise Expo in China.

If this artwork of Doom is real, then Marvel absolutely nailed the design. Rather than being a darker reflection of Iron Man, RDJ’s Doom looks like he was taken straight out of the comics. Given that Doom is one of the most popular villains in comic book history, Marvel seemed to understand that he had to be done right on the big screen.

Chris Gore of Film Threat also gave more details about what RDJ’s Doom is like based on an alleged teaser for the film:

“The way the character was described, in terms of Downey’s interpretation, is a classic Universal Monster, like The Phantom of the Opera…It’s a tragic figure and a broken figure, and part of it is his armor…Doom must have the armor because he has a broken body. Scarred…’He went full Universal Monster’ with the interpretation.’ He needs the suit to actually function.”

No official poster for Avengers: Doomsday has been released. Despite some posters seemingly being leaked at D23, this turned out to be impressive-looking fan art.

On December 18, 2025, one year before Avengers: Doomsday is scheduled to premiere, the Russo Brothers released a brief promo video showing a countdown timer to the film’s release. This simple video builds plenty of hype, suggesting that the end of the world is coming to Marvel with the arrival of Doomsday.

Film Threat claimed that a trailer would be screened in cinemas before Avatar: Fire and Ash, which premiered on December 19, 2025. The Hollywood Reporter claimed Marvel will screen four different teasers in theaters, one for each week, alongside Avatar: Fire and Ash.

The first teaser for Avengers: Doomsday was leaked beforehand, showing Steve Rogers walking to his and Peggy Carter’s home from Avengers: Endgame. We then see him putting away his Captain America uniform and cradling a baby, implied to be his. The video then cuts to a black screen with the message: “Steve Rogers will return in Avengers: Doomsday.”

The second teaser for Avengers: Doomsday follows Thor as he begs Odin to give him the strength of the All-Fathers to fight his next foe so that he can return home to his adopted daughter, Love.

The third teaser highlights the X-Men. In the video, we see Professor X meeting with Magneto in a dark, ruined X-Mansion. We then see Cyclops firing a ferocious optic blast with what appears to be a Sentinel walking behind him on a burning battlefield.

The fourth teaser depicts The Thing meeting with the Wakandans. Though Shuri is featured as the Black Panther, the video reveals that M’Baku became the King of Wakanda following the events of Wakanda Forever. We also see the return of the Talokans, with Namor sporting a new costume.

Each of these teaser trailers sets the stage for an epic war in the next Avengers film. With their overarching themes of family and loss, these videos hint at an emotional story for the film’s heroes as the clock ticks closer to doomsday.