Disney and the Marvel Cinematic Universe saved a surprise for fans this holiday season.  Way back in March the studio unveiled a long list of actors to appear in Avengers: Doomsday, directed by Anthony and Joe Russo, taking over theaters across the world May 1, 2026.  That big list included Robert Downey, Jr. back not as Tony Stark, but the star villain Victor von Doom, plus Patrick Stewart as Charles Xavier aka Professor X (last seen in a surprising return in Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness), Ian McKellen as Erik aka Magneto, Kelsey Grammer as Hank McCoy aka Beast, Rebecca Romijn as Mystique (who lost her powers when we last saw her), James Marsden as Cyclops, Alan Cumming as Nightcrawler, Channing Tatum as Gambit, Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards, Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm, Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm, Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Paul Rudd as Ant-Man, Tom Hiddleston as Loki, Anthony Mackie as Captain America, Simu Liu as Shang Chi, Letitia Wright as Shuri, Winston Duke as M’Baku, Danny Ramirez as The Falcon, Tenoch Huerta Mejía as Prince Namor, Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova aka the new Black Widow, Wyatt Russell as U.S. Agent, David Harbour as Red Guardian, Hannah John-Kamen as Ghost, and Lewis Pullman as Sentry.

So what’s this week’s big surprise for the cast list?  Check out this teaser for Avengers: Doomsday:

It’s going to be quite a wait.  As with the last Avengers movie, it, too, will be followed by a team-up/crossover sequel a year later.  This time it will be Avengers: Secret Wars.  So Avengers: Doomsday arrives May 1, 2026, and the conclusion arrives in Avengers: Secret Wars, May 7, 2027.

C.J. Bunce / Editor / borg