LOS ANGELES (AP) — Chris Hemsworth portrays Thor, and Anthony Mackie embodies the role of
Captain America
, Sebastian Stan returns as Bucky Barnes, Paul Rudd comes back as Ant-Man, and Tom Hiddleston resumes his role as Loki are all making their return in the
Avengers
group, where they will be accompanied by some of cinema’s earliest X-Men characters.
Marvel revealed that the five seasoned actors from the Marvel Cinematic Universe will be part of the ensemble for “Avengers: Doomsday,” set to release in 2026.
sequence of social media clips
that the company gradually introduced on Wednesday.
Patrick Stewart, aged 84, known for portraying Professor X in Fox’s “X-Men” movies from around 2000, along with Ian McKellen, 85, who played his adversary Magneto, will be part of the “Doomsday” ensemble. This move allows Disney and Marvel to capitalize on their purchase of Fox’s cinematic catalog. Also confirmed were Kelsey Grammer, who took on the role of Beast aka Hank McCoy; Rebecca Romijn, playing Mystique; James Marsden as Cyclops; and Alan Cumming as Nightcrawler.
Their characters were taken on by younger actors in the 2010s “X-Men” series reboot, and their inclusion is sure to cause serious fan speculation about the direction and timelines of “Avengers: Doomsday.”
Senior superheroes will team up with newer ones joining them, including characters who haven’t appeared in the MCU yet.
Vanessa Kirby, who will portray the Invisible Woman Sue Storm in this month’s release in July, is all set for her role.
“Fantastic Four: First Steps,”
“Avengers: Doomsday” is also scheduled. Pedro Pascal will portray Reed Richards and become part of the Avengers team as well. In these two films, Ebon Moss-Bachrach will appear as Ben Grimm, known as the Thing, alongside Joseph Quinn, who takes on the role of Johnny Storm, better known as the Human Torch.
Simu Liu, known for his role as the main character in “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” from 2021, has joined the new casting lineup. Also part of this announcement is Tenoch Huerta Mejía, famous for portraying the underwater villain Namor in “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.” Letitia Wright, who stars as Shuri in the “Black Panther” series, will return with the Avengers ensemble. Additionally, she’ll be alongside Winston Duke, another co-star from “Black Panther.”
Florence Pugh, who will reprise her MCU role as Yelena Belova in the forthcoming “Thunderbolts” will reprise her again in “Doomsday.” David Harbour, Wyatt Russell, Hannah John-Kamen and Lewis Pullman will also be in both films.
Danny Ramirez, who has assumed the Marvel mantle of Falcon, is also in the cast.
Several highly regarded and eagerly expected individuals were absent from the list of 27 names revealed; however, Marvel and Disney might be holding these close for future announcements.
The announcement made no reference to Hugh Jackman as Wolverine or Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool. However, it did feature Channing Tatum, known for his role as Gambit in last year’s film “Deadpool & Wolverine.”
The name Tom Holland was also absent. His portrayal of Spider-Man had joined the Avengers in earlier movies, borrowed from rights holder Sony. The intricate connection between Sony and Marvel had rendered this character a contentious issue.
Robert Downey Jr. revealed
Last summer, it was announced that he will be reprising his role to portray the antagonist Doctor Doom in the upcoming “Avengers” movie series.
“Avengers: Doomsday,” scheduled for release in May 2026, will mark the fifth installment in the “Avengers” series and the first since the blockbuster “Avengers Endgame” from 2019 topped the charts as one of the highest-grossing movies ever.
Marvel has been finding it difficult to regain its cultural prominence and box-office appeal since then, with expectations pinned on the upcoming team-up movies to restore the enchantment that had gripped cinemas for over ten years.
