Next year is gearing up to be a pivotal moment for Marvel Studios as the Avengers regroup for their fifth adventure, but an event from 2019 may pose a surprising challenge as the franchise moves forward.
Kevin Feige’s Marvel Cinematic Universe has spent the last several years navigating a period marked by unpredictable turnout. While Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021) delivered a massive hit, later entries such as The Marvels (2023) and Thunderbolts* (2025) struggled to match that stride. After four years of uneven results, the studio appears ready to turn the page.
A major piece of that planned shift arrives with the return of Joe and Anthony Russo, who are set to direct Avengers: Doomsday (2026) and Avengers: Secret Wars (2027). Marvel leadership has presented these films as a creative reset that will guide the MCU into a new era, tapping into the Russos’ blockbuster pedigree to revive the franchise’s momentum.
Avengers: Doomsday has quickly become one of the studio’s most ambitious ensemble projects, bringing together established MCU figures like Chris Hemsworth’s Thor and Anthony Mackie’s Captain America alongside legacy X-Men performers from the former 20th Century Studios era. Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen’s returns as Professor X and Magneto mark a significant crossover step, deepening the Multiverse framework the franchise has leaned into since Phase Four.
The film also introduces one of the MCU’s boldest reinventions yet as part of its reset initiative: Robert Downey Jr.’s comeback, not as Tony Stark, but as Victor Von Doom. First teased in the post-credits sequence of The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025), this new Doom may take an anti-hero direction, raising questions about how he’ll clash with the Avengers’ Multiversal objectives.
The next two Avengers entries were originally scheduled for May but now debut in December of 2026 and 2027. The shift places both films in a corridor Disney has historically dominated, especially following this year’s holiday release of Avatar: Fire and Ash (2025). If all goes as planned, the studio could secure a multi-year streak of winter tentpole success.
But plot details surrounding Doomsday continue to develop, and new reports suggest the story may explore darker emotional territory than previously expected.
A wave of recent rumors hints at a dramatically different interpretation of Doctor Doom’s MCU debut, one centered on personal tragedy instead of towering ambition. According to the latest insider claims (via Comic Book Movie), Robert Downey Jr.’s version of Victor Von Doom is driven by the devastating loss of his wife and son in a catastrophic accident that leaves him permanently scarred.
What turns his grief into a mission is the belief that the accident may be linked to Steve Rogers’ timeline-altering decisions during 2019’s Avengers: Endgame. If this proves true, Doom’s motivations extend beyond conquest—he enters Doomsday seeking justice shaped by heartbreak and anger.
Marvel has previously found success grounding its villains in human emotion, and this iteration of Doom would continue that tradition. The rumored storyline also lines up with talk that the Russos are approaching their return with a renewed focus on emotional scale, working again with writer Stephen McFeely and a massive ensemble of familiar heroes.
Additional whispers about multiple Doom variants and major Multiversal consequences only add fuel to the speculation. Nothing has been confirmed by Marvel Studios yet, but these possibilities suggest a version of Avengers: Doomsday where its central conflict hits on cosmic and deeply personal levels.
Fresh updates on the production landscape recently surfaced via The Hollywood Reporter.
“AGBO and the Russos are in post-production on Avengers: Doomsday, with additional photography expected to take place in the spring before cameras roll on Avengers: Secret Wars in the summer,” the outlet wrote.
This development reinforces earlier reports that the ending of Doomsday could still shift, especially with reshoots planned just prior to Secret Wars. Those adjustments may influence how the Russos choose to close out the fifth Avengers installment.
With the Multiverse storyline escalating, speculation has grown that several major MCU heroes may fall during the events of Doomsday. Characters including Thor (Hemsworth), Captain Marvel (Brie Larson), and Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan) have surfaced as potential casualties.
What do you think about the direction these new reports suggest for the MCU? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!
Reading his bio, I have to wonder. Is Thomas ever going to consider growing up?