Marvel’s next Avengers movie is being positioned as more than just the end of the Multiverse Saga.
Directors Anthony and Joe Russo have revealed that Avengers: Doomsday is intended to serve as a fresh starting point for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, even as it brings together characters and storylines from across the franchise.
The comments arrived during an appearance at SXSW London, where the filmmakers discussed the future of Marvel and the scale of the upcoming blockbuster.
“That serial shifting and changing and surprising you and then reinventing itself and then shifting and changing and then surprising you — that’s exciting and I think you’re going to see some shifting and changing [with Doomsday]. So, get ready for it. Look, we were with Rob [Downey Jr.] earlier today. We were both talking about this concept that we are back to phase zero. This is starting over from scratch. We want to make sure everybody feels like this isn’t leaning on anything from the past.”
Marvel Nears the End of Another Saga
The MCU has been built around long-running story arcs since Iron Man launched the franchise in 2008.
The Infinity Saga, which spanned the first three phases of Marvel’s interconnected universe, concluded with Avengers: Endgame in 2019. The film became one of the highest-grossing releases in cinema history and marked the end of an era for characters including Iron Man and Captain America.
Marvel followed that success with the Multiverse Saga, which expanded the franchise across both theatrical releases and Disney+.
Series and films such as Loki, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, WandaVision, and Deadpool & Wolverine introduced alternate timelines, parallel universes, and variants of familiar characters.
The storyline is now heading toward its conclusion.
Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars are expected to close out the Multiverse Saga, much as Infinity War and Endgame concluded the Infinity Saga.
Doctor Doom Takes Center Stage
The path to Avengers: Doomsday has changed significantly since the project was first announced.
Marvel originally planned for Kang to serve as the central villain of the saga. Those plans were abandoned after Jonathan Majors was fired following his assault and harassment conviction.
Doctor Doom has since taken over as the franchise’s next major threat.
Marvel confirmed last year that Robert Downey Jr. would return to the MCU in the role, marking a dramatic comeback for the actor who helped launch the franchise as Tony Stark.
The film’s cast reflects the scale of the story Marvel is attempting to tell.
Confirmed stars include Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Anthony Mackie (Captain America), Sebastian Stan (Winter Soldier), Tom Hiddleston (Loki), Florence Pugh (Yelena Belova), Pedro Pascal (Mister Fantastic), Vanessa Kirby (Invisible Woman), Patrick Stewart (Professor X), Ian McKellen (Magneto), and Chris Evans (Steve Rogers).
Joe Russo also addressed the challenge of managing such a large ensemble.
“Each one of those actors is playing somebody’s favorite character,” he said, “and so if you’re not going to search the character properly, then you’re going to disappoint someone in that audience. We grew up in the biggest Italian family. … We understand how to tell stories with multiple characters. A lot of that has to do with very subtle POV shifts throughout the story. If Thor, when he lands, if that accidentally cuts [Sebastian] Stan’s head off… That’s how close those points of view are to each other, and that’s all very calibrated, from a protocol standpoint.”
Outside the official announcements, speculation surrounding the film continues to build.
Many fans believe Avengers: Doomsday will establish Battleworld, the reality ruled by Doctor Doom in Marvel’s “Secret Wars” comics. Recent promotion surrounding a Latveria-themed Marvel pop-up cafe at SXSW London has only added to those theories.
Are you excited for Avengers: Doomsday?
