Avengers: Doomsday is coming next summer, and Captain America: Brave New World has a major hint towards the upcoming movie.
The new movie's post-credit scene sees Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) warned about a threat to come and what he's going to have to do "when you have to protect this place from the others".
It's an obvious nod to the Secret Wars storyline in the comics, but while it was down to the Beyonders in the comics, we have a feeling it's going to be Doctor Doom who sets these events in motion in the MCU.
During Marvel's Comic-Con panel in July 2024, it was confirmed that Joe and Anthony Russo were back to direct Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars. What's more, Robert Downey Jr is back, but not as Iron Man... as Doctor Doom.
The Russos are taking over from original director Destin Daniel Cretton, who left the movie in November 2023. Michael Waldron – who is already writing Avengers: Secret Wars – joined the movie as a writer taking over from Jeff Loveness.
In February 2024, it was reported that Marvel was reworking Avengers 5 and it will no longer be called Avengers: The Kang Dynasty. Jonathan Majors was dropped by Marvel on December 18, 2023 after being found guilty of assault and harassment.
The next Avengers movie is half of a double bill that will bring The Multiverse Saga to a close, but before we can even start thinking of Secret Wars, there's a lot that needs to be done with Avengers: Doomsday.
Here's everything you need to know about Avengers: Doomsday.
Avengers: Doomsday release date – when can we expect Avengers 5?
In June 2023, Avengers: Doomsday was delayed by Marvel and will now hit cinemas on May 1, 2026.
That's a move of one year from its initial release date of May 2, 2025 and has also led to Avengers: Secret Wars being moved from May 5, 2026 to May 7, 2027.
We don't have an official confirmation of when filming will start on the new movie, but Anthony Mackie has said it will start this summer.
"We shoot in London through the summer and then the following summer we shoot the next one [Avengers: Secret Wars]. It's going to be a full slate," he told Deadline in February 2025.
Avengers: Doomsday cast – who is Robert Downey Jr playing in Avengers 5?
Let's start with the massive news. Robert Downey Jr has been confirmed to play iconic Marvel villain Doctor Doom in Avengers: Doomsday.
We don't know exactly how it'll work yet, but it wouldn't be a surprise if this Doctor Doom comes from whatever world the upcoming Fantastic Four movie takes place in.
It remains to be seen if Victor Von Doom is a Tony Stark variant.
As mentioned above, Jonathan Majors has officially been dropped by Marvel so he won't be reprising his role as Kang the Conqueror.
Majors played the character (or Variants of him) in both seasons of Loki and also in Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania.
Kang was being set up as the new Big Bad of the MCU, but with this Doctor Doom news, it seems that Kang might not return. There's still a chance that Marvel could recast him though to play a role in the next Avengers movie.
But who will form the Avengers team in Avengers: Doomsday to take on Doctor Doom?
The original Avengers team has been almost completely deconstructed – Black Widow and Iron Man are dead, Captain America is an old man and Thor has jetted off into space with the Guardians.
Sam Wilson is asked by Thaddeus Ross to restart the Avengers in Captain America: Brave New World. However, the movie ends with Ross imprisoned in The Raft, so it's unclear if whoever has taken over as US President will follow through on this.
At Comic-Con in July 2024, Feige confirmed that the casts of The Fantastic Four: First Steps, Thunderbolts* and Captain America: Brave New World would all be involved in the next two Avengers movies.
That could still point to Wilson leading the new version of the Avengers, but there are plenty of other heroes like Spider-Man, Valkyrie, War Machine, Winter Soldier and Doctor Strange still knocking around in the MCU.
Perhaps there could be more than one Avengers team as it seems the MCU has been working to set up the Young Avengers.
Hailee Steinfeld's Kate Bishop joined the MCU in the Disney+ show Hawkeye and since the TV shows are now part of the universe in a bigger way than before, it could mean they're all paving the way for the team to be introduced.
Steinfeld reprised her role at the end of The Marvels and Kamala Khan certainly looked to be setting up the Young Avengers, so they could well have a part to play in the next Avengers movie.
It's unclear exactly who else will be involved in Avengers: Doomsday, at least officially.
There have been reports that Chris Evans will reprise his role as Steve Rogers in the new movie, but he's denied those. Hayley Atwell has also been rumoured to return as Peggy Carter, but hasn't commented yet.
Benedict Cumberbatch is also confusing everybody, possibly on purpose, saying that Doctor Strange won't be in Avengers: Doomsday, although will be in "a lot" of Avengers: Secret Wars.
Cumberbatch has since said that he is in Avengers: Doomsday, only days after his previous comments, so who knows.
Brie Larson teased fans in August 2024 that she knows "things" about her MCU comeback, but stopped short of confirming a return, while Ryan Reynolds has no idea if he'll be back as Deadpool.
It sounds like Chris Hemsworth's Thor will appear in some capacity, at least. Unless his interview with Wired in June 2022 contained a slip of the tongue.
Discussing the early days of the franchise, Hemsworth catapulted himself into the future. "I didn't really know, none of us did, if it was gonna work, or if there was gonna be an extension beyond that first film into Thor 2, 3, 4 or Avengers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5," Hemsworth said.
"It was all just an idea and a dream. And one that I was on board with."
Yeah, sounds like he's signed up for it to us.
Avengers: Doomsday plot – what will Avengers 5 be about?
Originally, it looked like Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania was setting up just why Kang would be a dangerous villain going forward.
The Kang we met in the Quantum Realm, who was attempting to escape back into normal-sized reality, was seemingly crushed to death.
But the film's mid-credit scene revealed an entire council of Kangs, including the real big bad, Immortus, who, having summoned 'all of us' Kangs, rallies them by saying: "They will take everything we built, so let's stop wasting time."
We had thought this was what the new movie would build from, but with the exit of Majors and the announcement of Doctor Doom, it seems Avengers: Doomsday will be a complete pivot from what was being set up.
It's also possible that Marvel has just substituted Doctor Doom for Kang, and the story remains the same.
All we really know is that it'll set up Secret Wars, and Captain America: Brave New World's credit scene certainly points to that storyline from the comics where different worlds' Earths are pitted against each other.
Avengers: Doomsday – any Avengers 5 footage yet?
Filming has yet to start on Avengers: Doomsday so a trailer is a long way away, probably not until at least early 2026.
Sorry about that.
Avengers: Doomsday is released in cinemas on May 1, 2026.
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Movies Editor, Digital Spy Ian has more than 10 years of movies journalism experience as a writer and editor. Starting out as an intern at trade bible Screen International, he was promoted to report and analyse UK box-office results, as well as carving his own niche with horror movies, attending genre festivals around the world. After moving to Digital Spy, initially as a TV writer, he was nominated for New Digital Talent of the Year at the PPA Digital Awards. He became Movies Editor in 2019, in which role he has interviewed 100s of stars, including Chris Hemsworth, Florence Pugh, Keanu Reeves, Idris Elba and Olivia Colman, become a human encyclopedia for Marvel and appeared as an expert guest on BBC News and on-stage at MCM Comic-Con. Where he can, he continues to push his horror agenda – whether his editor likes it or not.
