What’s Coming in 2026 – Avengers: Doomsday Breakdown

The MCU is building to something massive in 2026. With Avengers: Doomsday* scheduled as the tentpole release, Marvel Studios is orchestrating what could be the most ambitious crossover event since *Endgame*. For fans who’ve been tracking the Multiverse Saga’s breadcrumbs through *Loki*, *Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness*, and *Deadpool & Wolverine, the upcoming slate represents a culmination of storytelling threads that have been weaving together since 2021.

Avengers: Doomsday Teaser: What We Know

The limited footage and promotional materials released for Avengers: Doomsday have given us tantalizing glimpses into what Marvel has planned. The central antagonist, Doctor Doom, represents a seismic shift in the MCU’s villain landscape—this isn’t just another Kang variant or cosmic threat, but rather the introduction of one of Marvel Comics’ most complex and powerful adversaries.

Doctor Doom’s Multiversal Gambit

What makes the Doomsday* teaser particularly revealing is its focus on the multiverse’s collapsing stability. Unlike previous MCU films that treated the multiverse as an infinite playground of possibilities, *Doomsday appears to position it as a fragile construct on the verge of catastrophic failure. The visual language in the teaser footage—reality literally cracking like broken glass, entire timelines bleeding into one another—suggests that Doctor Doom isn’t simply conquering dimensions but rather attempting to control or perhaps even collapse the multiverse itself.

The strategic genius here is that Doom operates differently than Thanos or Kang. Where Thanos sought balance through destruction, and Kang pursued control through temporal manipulation, Doom’s methodology appears rooted in his unshakeable belief that only he possesses the intellect and will to save existence—even if that salvation requires subjugating all of reality under his rule.

Key Plot Indicators

Several specific moments from the teaser warrant deeper analysis:

The Baxter Building Connection: Brief footage shows what appears to be the Baxter Building, strongly suggesting that the Fantastic Four won’t just be introduced in their standalone film but will be integral to Doomsday‘s plot. This makes narrative sense—Reed Richards represents one of the few minds that could theoretically challenge Doom intellectually, and their comic book rivalry is legendary.

Incursion Events: The teaser’s imagery heavily implies that incursions—events where two universes collide and destroy each other—will be the central catastrophe. This concept, pulled directly from Jonathan Hickman’s comic run, provides the perfect mechanism for bringing together heroes from different realities while creating genuine stakes. If incursions are happening, then entire universes are literally being erased.

The Celestial Corpse: One striking shot appears to show heroes standing before a massive Celestial corpse, reminiscent of but distinct from Knowhere. This could indicate that the consequences of Eternals are finally coming home to roost, or that Doom has already achieved victories we haven’t witnessed yet.

Confirmed Hero Returns: Assembling the Ultimate Team

Marvel has been strategic about hero confirmations, but several key returns are now verified for Avengers: Doomsday.

Legacy Avengers Making Their Return

Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom: Perhaps the most shocking casting reveal in MCU history, RDJ’s return as the primary antagonist rather than Tony Stark represents bold creative swinging. This isn’t a multiverse variant of Iron Man—Downey is playing Victor Von Doom, giving the actor a completely new character to inhabit. The meta-textual implications alone are staggering: the face of the Infinity Saga now embodies the greatest threat of the Multiverse Saga.

Chris Evans’ Mysterious Role: Evans is confirmed to return, though Marvel has been cagey about whether he’s playing Steve Rogers, Johnny Storm, or another character entirely. Given the multiverse setup, all options remain on the table. The smart money suggests a variant rather than the sacred timeline’s Steve Rogers, preserving his perfect Endgame conclusion.

Scarlett Johansson’s Potential Return: While not officially confirmed, mounting evidence suggests Black Widow could return—either as a variant or through some multiverse mechanism. Her involvement would complete the original six Avengers’ presence in some form.

The New Guard Steps Up

Sam Wilson as Captain America: Anthony Mackie’s Sam Wilson will be carrying the shield into battle, fresh off his standalone film Captain America: Brave New World. This positions Sam as a central leader figure, continuing Steve Rogers’ legacy in the face of multiversal catastrophe.

Shang-Chi’s Expanded Role: Simu Liu’s Shang-Chi is confirmed to return, with his Ten Rings likely playing a significant role. The mystical artifacts have already been established as far more ancient and powerful than initially revealed, and their connection to other dimensions could prove crucial.

The Fantastic Four: The First Family of Marvel will make their presence felt in Doomsday*, presumably after their introduction in *The Fantastic Four: First Steps. Reed Richards’ scientific genius and Sue Storm’s force fields represent essential tactical assets against Doom, while Johnny and Ben bring raw power to the fight.

Tom Holland’s Spider-Man: Peter Parker is expected to return, though his role remains under wraps. After No Way Home erased everyone’s memory of Peter Parker, his reintegration into the larger MCU team dynamic presents fascinating character opportunities.

Wildcards and Surprises

Marvel traditionally holds back several surprise appearances for the theatrical release. Based on the narrative setup, these heroes have a high probability for inclusion:

– Doctor Strange: Benedict Cumberbatch’s sorcerer has been at the heart of multiverse storylines and would be narratively essential

– Wanda Maximoff: If reality itself is at stake, the Scarlet Witch’s reality-warping powers become relevant again

– Loki variants: Tom Hiddleston’s Loki literally holds the multiverse together at the end of his series—that thread must be addressed

– Deadpool: Wade Wilson has already crossed universes; his involvement seems inevitable

The confirmed roster already suggests a team larger than Infinity War* or *Endgame, which makes sense given the scope of a multiversal threat.

The Broader MCU Timeline: How Doomsday Connects Everything

Understanding Avengers: Doomsday requires examining how it functions within the Multiverse Saga’s architecture.

The foundation for Doomsday has been systematically laid:

– Loki (2021): Introduced the multiverse, the TVA, and He Who Remains, establishing that multiverse management prevents catastrophic timeline collapse

– Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021): Demonstrated the dangers of multiverse breaches and how tampering with reality creates cascading consequences

– Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022): Explored incursions directly, showing us what happens when universes collide

– Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023): Introduced Kang the Conqueror, setting up a villain who was meant to be the Saga’s Thanos-level threat

– Loki Season 2 (2023): Showed Loki sacrificing himself to hold the multiverse together, creating a fragile new status quo

– Deadpool & Wolverine (2024): Demonstrated the TVA’s continued involvement and the concept of “anchor beings” whose death causes universe decay

The Kang Question

Originally, the Multiverse Saga was building toward Kang as the primary antagonist, with Jonathan Majors cast across multiple projects. Following Majors’ departure from the MCU, Marvel pivoted to Doctor Doom as the central threat. This change actually strengthens the narrative in several ways:

Doom > Kang for Thematic Depth: While Kang represented temporal manipulation and infinite variants, Doom brings ideological complexity. He genuinely believes he’s saving reality, making him a more philosophically interesting antagonist than a conqueror simply seeking power.

The Fantastic Four Connection: Doom’s presence is intrinsically tied to the Fantastic Four in ways Kang never could. This creates richer character dynamics and personal stakes beyond just “stop the bad guy.”

Secret Wars Setup: In the comics, Doom plays the central role in the Secret Wars storyline, making him the perfect bridge between Doomsday* and the already-announced *Avengers: Secret Wars in 2027.

Timeline Positioning

Avengers: Doomsday* sits at the crucial fifth film position in Phase 6, following *The Fantastic Four: First Steps. This positioning is deliberate—audiences will meet the Fantastic Four and understand their relationship with Doom before the larger conflict erupts.

The 2026 release also allows Marvel to have completed several crucial character arcs:

– Sam Wilson will have fully established himself as Captain America

– The Thunderbolts will have formed, providing potential wild-card team members

– The Fantastic Four will be integrated into the MCU proper

– The Young Avengers members will be in place (though they may feature more prominently in Secret Wars)

The Secret Wars Bridge

Everything about Doomsday*’s setup indicates it won’t provide full resolution. Instead, it will create the conditions for *Secret Wars. In the comics, Secret Wars involves Doom literally reshaping reality into Battleworld, a patchwork planet made from fragments of destroyed universes.

The likely trajectory:

1. Doomsday shows incursions accelerating and heroes fighting to prevent universal collapse

2. Despite their efforts, the multiverse cannot be saved in its current form

3. Doom enacts his plan to “save” reality, setting up the Battleworld scenario

4. Secret Wars deals with heroes fighting to restore the proper reality from Doom’s constructed world

This two-film structure mirrors Infinity War/Endgame but with higher metaphysical stakes—not just half of life erased, but the entire structure of reality rewritten.

What This Means for the MCU Future

The Multiverse Saga’s conclusion will fundamentally reshape the MCU. Secret Wars in the comics served as a soft reboot, allowing Marvel to streamline continuity. The MCU version will likely:

– Consolidate the multiverse into a single, stable timeline

– Allow for the selective integration of mutants, Fantastic Four, and other properties

– Provide exit points for actors whose contracts are concluding

– Establish a new status quo for whatever Phase 7 brings

Doomsday* is where the thesis of the Multiverse Saga gets tested. Where *Loki* asked “what if one man held the multiverse together?” and various films explored “what if realities could intersect?”, *Doomsday asks the crucial question: “What if the multiverse is too broken to save?”

Why 2026 Matters

The 2026 release date positions Avengers: Doomsday* at roughly the same point in the Multiverse Saga that *Infinity War occupied in the Infinity Saga—the penultimate Avengers film that sets up impossible stakes.

Marvel has spent five years building this narrative infrastructure. The payoff needs to justify that investment while setting up Secret Wars* to conclude the saga definitively. Early indicators suggest that *Doomsday will deliver the scale, emotional resonance, and narrative complexity that MCU fans have been waiting for since the multiverse was first cracked open.

For superfans tracking every connection and Easter egg, Doomsday* represents the ultimate puzzle box—a film that should theoretically address plot threads from *Loki*, *WandaVision*, *What If…?, and virtually every Phase 4-6 project. The ambitious scope is both the film’s greatest promise and its most significant challenge. The MCU is indeed building to something massive in 2026. Whether it can stick the landing remains to be seen, but the pieces are certainly in place for an unprecedented cinematic event.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: When does Avengers: Doomsday release?

A: Avengers: Doomsday is scheduled for release on May 1, 2026, positioning it as Marvel’s major tentpole film for that year and the penultimate Avengers film before Secret Wars in 2027.

Q: Is Robert Downey Jr. playing Tony Stark or Doctor Doom?

A: Robert Downey Jr. is confirmed to be playing Doctor Doom, not a variant of Tony Stark. This represents a completely new character for Downey in the MCU, making him the primary antagonist of the Multiverse Saga’s conclusion.

Q: Which original Avengers are returning for Doomsday?

A: Robert Downey Jr. returns as Doctor Doom (not Tony Stark), and Chris Evans is confirmed in an undisclosed role. Scarlett Johansson’s return as a Black Widow variant is heavily rumored but not officially confirmed. The film focuses on both legacy characters and the new generation of MCU heroes.

Q: What are incursions in the MCU?

A: Incursions are catastrophic events where two universes collide, destroying one or both realities. First mentioned in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, they appear to be the central threat in Avengers: Doomsday, with Doctor Doom attempting to control or prevent them.

Q: How does Doomsday connect to Secret Wars?

A: Avengers: Doomsday sets up Avengers: Secret Wars (2027) by establishing the multiverse collapse crisis. Doomsday will likely show heroes unable to prevent universal destruction, leading to Doom reshaping reality into Battleworld, which becomes the setting for Secret Wars, where heroes fight to restore proper reality.

Q: Will the Fantastic Four appear in Avengers: Doomsday?

A: Yes, the Fantastic Four are confirmed to appear in Avengers: Doomsday following their introduction in The Fantastic Four: First Steps. Their inclusion makes narrative sense as Reed Richards and Doctor Doom have one of Marvel’s most iconic rivalries, and Reed’s intellect is crucial to combating Doom’s plans.