"Doomsday's Missing Avengers Hint at Secret Wars and X-Men"

It's happening, Marvel fans: Avengers: Doomsday is officially in production. Marvel Studios surprised everyone with a live stream cast announcement for the new film, featuring a slew of X-Men actors, some shocking characters missing entirely, and a marathon session that lasted over five and a half hours! As fans process all the reveals, one burning question emerges: Where are all the Avengers in this new "Avengers" movie?

The announcement confirmed 27 characters, but only a few are official Avengers members. The roster is dominated by actors from the Fox X-Men franchise, the Thunderbolts, and the Fantastic Four, leaving us with just a handful of true Avengers. Delving into the in-universe and real-world implications of this casting choice might provide significant clues about the plots of both Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars. Let's dive in.

The Most Surprising Avengers and Marvel Characters Not Announced for Doomsday

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Why the Thunderbolts Are More Important to Doomsday Than We Thought

The only characters revealed in the announcement traditionally associated with 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, even though Joaquin Torres and Shuri aren’t typically part of the team. Some characters like Namor or the Fantastic Four have occasionally joined the Avengers in the comics, but they aren’t considered core members.

So, where are 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 mysterious asterisk that fans have been speculating about. While some international posters suggest the asterisk means "Avengers are not available," it could be a clever marketing tactic.

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 key role in Doomsday, the asterisk might indicate 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." The lack of a team name could be a running gag, but with Valentina Allegra de la Fontaine purchasing Avengers Tower and commenting on the absence of Avengers, it appears the Thunderbolts are poised to take over as the MCU's primary superhero team.

Naming the Thunderbolts 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 first introduced in a 2000 miniseries and later integrated into the Marvel universe in 2005 as part of Brian Michael Bendis’ New Avengers comic.

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. Without access to many traditional Avengers, Sam might have to rely on the less powerful Thunderbolts, putting them at a disadvantage in their initial confrontation with Robert Downey, Jr.’s Doctor Doom.

Are the X-Men Doomed in Avengers: Doomsday?

Speaking of Doom, one of Doomsday's primary goals is to establish Robert Downey, Jr.'s portrayal of the character as a formidable threat. Since Doom is absent from the upcoming Fantastic Four reboot, where Galactus takes the villain role (though we might see a Doom cameo in a post-credits scene), Avengers: Doomsday must set the stage for Doom as the ultimate antagonist of the Multiverse Saga. What better way to do this than by having Doom eliminate several major characters fans thought were safe? Just as Thanos snapped away half of all life and many fan favorites in Infinity War, Doctor Doom might be poised to wipe out a significant portion of Doomsday’s cast. Given the confirmed characters, the Fox X-Men seem most likely to be 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. We know that Secret Wars is on the horizon, and Incursions (multiple universes colliding, leading to widespread destruction), a key plot point from the 2015 Secret Wars comic, have already been mentioned in Multiverse of Madness. Witnessing an Incursion firsthand is likely the best way to establish the stakes for Secret Wars, which means an entire universe will need to be destroyed by Doctor Doom. Destroying the Fox X-Men universe makes the most sense. Similar to how Infinity War temporarily killed off many newer characters so Endgame could focus on the original six Avengers, Doom wiping out the Fox X-Men would allow the return of characters like Spider-Man, Hulk, Scarlet Witch, Captain Marvel, and others to take the fight directly to Doom and avenge the destroyed universe. This could lead to a triumphant finale to the Multiverse Saga, potentially matching the excitement of Endgame that 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 seems like the most plausible explanation for the absence of many Avengers in the Doomsday cast.