Marvel fans, brace yourselves: Avengers: Doomsday is officially in production. Marvel Studios unveiled the film's cast through a live stream cast announcement, which included a surprising array of X-Men actors but left many fans scratching their heads over the notable absence of key Avengers. The marathon announcement, clocking in at over five and a half hours, has left the community buzzing with theories and questions. As fans process these reveals, one pressing question emerges: Where are all the Avengers in this new "Avengers" movie?

The announcement confirmed 27 characters, but only a few are traditional Avengers. The roster is heavily populated with actors from the Fox X-Men franchise, alongside members of the Thunderbolts and the Fantastic Four. This leaves fans pondering the implications for both Avengers: Doomsday and the upcoming Secret Wars. Let's dive deeper into this intriguing development.

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 traditionally linked with the Avengers in the announcement are Anthony Mackie's Captain America, Chris Hemsworth's Thor, and Paul Rudd's Ant-Man. Additionally, Danny Ramirez's Falcon and Letitia Wright's Black Panther are likely to join the Avengers, though their comic book counterparts aren't typically part of the team. Some characters like Namor and the Fantastic Four have been Avengers in the comics, but they're not central figures in the team's history.

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 be tied to the Thunderbolts*, with the asterisk sparking fan theories for months. Some international posters suggest the asterisk indicates an "Avengers are not available" message, though this might be just marketing fun.

Bucky Barnes, Yelena Belova, Red Guardian, Ghost, U.S. Agent, and the Sentry are all set to appear in Avengers: Doomsday. Why the focus on a team with less traditional power (except for the Sentry) and not usually considered Avengers? It seems the MCU is poised for a significant shift. The Thunderbolts' prominence hints that they might become 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." Valentina Allegra de la Fontaine's purchase of Avengers Tower and her comments in the trailer suggest the Thunderbolts may assume the Avengers' role as the MCU's primary superhero team.

This transition makes sense with the Sentry as a major player, and his evil counterpart, the Void, likely being the film's main antagonist. The Sentry's reintroduction into the Marvel universe in 2005 as part of Brian Michael Bendis' New Avengers comic 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 fill out a new Avengers roster, possibly led by Sam Wilson's Captain America. Recall the plot point in Captain America: Brave New World where President Ross asked Sam to rebuild the team. With limited access to traditional Avengers, Sam might have to rely on the less powerful Thunderbolts, putting them at a disadvantage in their initial clash with Robert Downey Jr.'s Doctor Doom.

Are the X-Men Doomed in Avengers: Doomsday?

Speaking of Doom, establishing Robert Downey Jr.'s version as a credible threat is a major focus for Avengers: Doomsday. 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 will set the stage for Doom as the ultimate antagonist of the Multiverse Saga. What better way than having Doom eliminate several key characters thought to be safe? Much like Thanos' snap in Infinity War, Doctor Doom could wipe out a significant portion of the Doomsday cast, with the Fox X-Men likely being the most vulnerable.

Eliminating the Fox X-Men would not only create a shocking "you bastard!" moment for Doom but also free up space and budget for the traditional MCU cast to return in Secret Wars. With Incursions—a key plot point from the 2015 Secret Wars comic—already mentioned in Multiverse of Madness, seeing one firsthand could establish the stakes for Secret Wars. This means an entire universe may need to be destroyed by Doctor Doom, and the Fox X-Men universe is the logical candidate.

Bringing back characters like Spider-Man, Hulk, Scarlet Witch, Captain Marvel, and others to confront Doom and avenge the destroyed universe would provide a thrilling conclusion to the Multiverse Saga. This could be Marvel Studios' way to replicate the excitement of Endgame's epic finale, which they've been trying and failing to match in Phases 4 and 5. We won't know for sure until Avengers: Doomsday hits theaters on May 1, 2026, but this seems the most plausible explanation for the scarcity of Avengers in the Doomsday cast.