Doomsday's Lack of Avengers Hints at Secret Wars and X-Men

It's happening, Marvel fans: Avengers: Doomsday is officially in production. Marvel Studios thrilled audiences with a live stream cast announcement for the new film, revealing a surprising roster that includes many X-Men actors. The announcement took a staggering five and a half hours, leaving fans buzzing with excitement and speculation. Amidst the flurry of reveals, one question stands out: Where are all the Avengers in this new "Avengers" movie?

The video confirmed 27 characters, but only a few are official Avengers members. The lineup is dominated by actors from the Fox X-Men franchise, the Thunderbolts, and the Fantastic Four, leaving fans puzzled about the absence of iconic Avengers. This shift in casting could offer significant clues about the plots of both Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars. Let's dive deeper into what this might mean.

The Most Surprising Avengers and Marvel Characters Not Announced for Doomsday

12 ImagesWhy the Thunderbolts Are More Important to Doomsday Than We Thought

The only characters in the announcement traditionally linked to the Avengers are Anthony Mackie’s Captain America, Chris Hemsworth’s Thor, and Paul Rudd’s Ant-Man. Danny Ramirez’s Falcon and Letitia Wright’s Black Panther are likely to be Avengers, despite Joaquin Torres and Shuri not typically being part of the team. Additionally, characters like Namor or the Fantastic Four have had brief stints with the Avengers in the comics, but aren't key members.

So, why the absence of Tom Holland’s Spider-Man, Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk, Elizabeth Olsen’s Scarlet Witch, Brie Larson’s Captain Marvel, Don Cheadle’s War Machine, and Benedict Cumberbatch’s Doctor Strange? The answer might lie with the Thunderbolts*, and the intriguing asterisk that has sparked fan theories for months. While some international posters suggest the asterisk indicates that "Avengers are not available," this might just be clever marketing.

Bucky Barnes, Yelena Belova, Red Guardian, Ghost, U.S. Agent, and the Sentry are all confirmed for Avengers: Doomsday. Why the focus on a team of less powerful characters (except for the Sentry) who aren't typically Avengers? The MCU seems to be setting up a significant shift. With the Thunderbolts playing a major role in Doomsday, the asterisk might hint that they'll be dubbed the New Avengers by the film's end. In the trailers, Red Guardian is the only one who seems to like the "Thunderbolts" name, while Bucky insists they "can’t call ourselves that." This could be a running gag throughout the film, but with Valentina Allegra de la Fontaine purchasing Avengers Tower and commenting on the lack of Avengers, it appears the Thunderbolts are poised to take over as the MCU's primary superhero team.

The Thunderbolts becoming the New Avengers would align with the Sentry's prominence and his evil counterpart, the Void, likely being the film's main antagonist. The Sentry was reintroduced into the Marvel universe in 2005 as part of Brian Michael Bendis’ New Avengers comic, which supports this theory.

The Thunderbolts: The Tumultuous History of Marvel's Twisted Super-Team

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Once established in the MCU, the Thunderbolts could be recruited to form a new Avengers roster, possibly led by Sam Wilson’s Captain America. Recall that in Captain America: Brave New World, President Ross asked Sam to help rebuild the team. With many traditional Avengers unavailable, Sam might have to rely on the less powerful Thunderbolts, setting the stage for a challenging confrontation with Robert Downey, Jr.’s Doctor Doom.

Are the X-Men Doomed in Avengers: Doomsday?

One of the major concerns for Avengers: Doomsday is establishing Robert Downey, Jr.'s Doctor Doom as a credible threat. Since Doom is absent from the upcoming Fantastic Four reboot, where Galactus takes the villain role (though a cameo might appear in a post-credits scene), Doomsday must set the stage for Doom as the ultimate antagonist of the Multiverse Saga. What better way than for Doom to eliminate several major characters fans thought were safe? Just as Thanos snapped away half of all life in Infinity War, Doctor Doom might be poised to wipe out a significant portion of Doomsday's cast, with the Fox X-Men most likely on the chopping block.

Doctor Doom wiping out the Fox X-Men would not only create a dramatic "you bastard!" moment but also free up space and budget for the more traditional MCU cast to return in Secret Wars. With Incursions (multiple universes colliding) already mentioned in Multiverse of Madness, witnessing an Incursion firsthand could set the stakes for Secret Wars. Destroying the Fox X-Men universe would be a fitting way to do this. Similar to how Infinity War temporarily killed off newer characters to focus on the original six Avengers in Endgame, Doom's actions could pave the way for characters like Spider-Man, Hulk, Scarlet Witch, Captain Marvel, and others to return and confront Doom, avenging the destroyed universe.

This approach could provide a triumphant finale to the Multiverse Saga, potentially matching the excitement of Endgame's epic conclusion, which Marvel Studios has been trying and failing to replicate in Phases 4 and 5. We won't know for sure until Avengers: Doomsday hits theaters on May 1, 2026, but this theory offers a compelling explanation for the limited presence of Avengers in the film's cast.