During their big panel in Hall H at Comic-Con, Marvel’s Kevin Feige announced that filmmakers Joe and Anthony Russo will return to direct the next two Avengers movies – Avengers: Doomsday (previously known as “The Kang Dynasty”), and Avengers: Secret Wars. Not much is known about the movies set to relase in 2026 and 2027, respectively other than they will be the next large scale adventures that will require the Avengers to team up again. Though the team roster will most likely change a bit considering the developments in the Marvel Cinematic Universe these last few years.
Another big announcement was that Robert Downey, Jr. (who as we all know previously played Tony Stark/Iron Man) will return as well, but this time he will portray the villainous Doctor Doom. Primarily an enemy of the Fantastic Four, Doom has crossed paths with pretty much every other hero in the Marvel Universe, and his presence wouldn’t feel too out of place considering one of the movies will adapt the “Secret Wars” story from the comics where Doom played a pretty big role. Speaking of which, it was also announced during the panel that the Fantastic Four themselves will show up in these upcoming Avengers movies, following their own new movie set within the MCU (now sub-titled “First Steps”, and set to debut next year). Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach and Joseph Quinn are the new actors to portray the superhero quartet.
“New mask, same task,” Downey said on stage, while clad in Doctor Doom robes, after taking off his metal mask. “What can I say, I like playing complicated characters”. Here’s a video showing the reveal:
Robert Downey Jr as Victor Von Doom for Avengers Doomsday pic.twitter.com/6kNmsN2y9h
— Deadline Hollywood (@DEADLINE) July 28, 2024
Joe and Anthony Russo have previously directed some of the bigger event movies in the MCU, such as Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. Bringing them back to helm the next two Avengers stories just feels right. Taking into account their credentials and the scope of the Secret Wars story, things should be massively entertaining, as well.
Avengers: Doomsday is currently scheduled to release on May 1st, 2026. Avengers: Secret Wars is currently scheduled to release on May 7th, 2027. Stay tuned for further updates.
