S Poddar
Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart are coming back to their legendary roles as Magneto and Professor Charles Xavier, respectively, in the new Avengers: Doomsday. Marvel Studios revealed this thrilling information during a live stream on Wednesday, announcing an impressive roster of actors who will appear in the first Avengers movie in six years.
Alongside McKellen and Stewart, Avengers: Doomsday will feature a host of familiar faces from the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), as well as some exciting new additions. The film will include Black Panther’s Letitia Wright, Winston Duke, and Tenoch Huerta Mejía; Thor’s Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston; Ant-Man’s Paul Rudd; Shang-Chi’s Simu Liu; and Captain America’s Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan. The fans will also be excited to watch the cast of this summer’s Fantastic Four reboot, such as Oscar-nominated Vanessa Kirby and Stranger Things‘ Joseph Quinn. The Thunderbolts movie that is coming out will also bring stars like Florence Pugh and David Harbour.
McKellen and Stewart’s return is especially thrilling for die-hard fans of the X-Men series. Stewart most recently played Professor Xavier in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness after his character passed away in Logan, while McKellen last played Magneto in X-Men: Days of Future Past. They will be accompanied by other major X-Men stars, such as Kelsey Grammer, Rebecca Romijn, James Marsden, and Alan Cumming.
Joining the A-list roster, Channing Tatum, who was already set to feature in a solo Gambit movie, will feature in Avengers: Doomsday after his cameo in Deadpool 2 with Wolverine. One noticeable absence, though, is that of Elizabeth Olsen, who takes on the character of the Scarlet Witch. Olsen has confirmed she won’t appear in the cast of this film.
A thrilling addition to the movie will be Robert Downey Jr., who will play the villain Doctor Doom. This was announced at last year’s San Diego Comic-Con, where Downey Jr. made a joke about his comeback, stating, “New mask. Same task.”. Boy, I tell you, I enjoy playing complex characters.” Fans can look forward to a greater exploration of his character’s complexity, as the directors of the film, Anthony and Joe Russo, have stated that they admire villains who believe they are the heroes of their own narratives. Joe Russo recently stated, “That’s when they become three-dimensional and when they become more interesting.”. And with an actor as talented as Robert Downey Jr, you must build a properly formed, three-dimensional character to present to the audience. A lot of our attention is headed in that direction.
The Russo brothers, best known for working on earlier Avengers movies like Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, return to direct. Their most recent Marvel outing, Avengers: Endgame, is still one of the biggest-grossing movies of all time, having raked in more than $2.79 billion worldwide. Although their latest outing, The Electric State, was met with divided reviews, with The Guardian’s Peter Bradshaw deeming it “very bland and derivative,” there is little doubt that the hype is great for their return to the MCU.
The release of Avengers: Doomsday is eagerly awaited, particularly after the lukewarm reception of some of the more recent MCU releases. Captain America: Brave New World was a commercial success, taking $401 million at the global box office, while The Marvels underwhelmed, taking only $206 million. As the MCU keeps pushing forward and growing, Avengers: Doomsday will be a milestone film that brings together a number of strands from both the past and present.
Now in development in London, Avengers: Doomsday will hit theaters in May 2026. The fans of the MCU and of the X-Men franchise alike will be curious to know how this exciting new chapter plays out on the big screen.
