Avengers Doomsday: Broken Heroes, Chaos in the Multiverse
Well, wasn't expecting this to pop up this soon, yet here we are. Hello again everyone, hope you're all doing well and Doomsday is nearly upon us as we recently got a proper trailer to one of the biggest movies of not just 2026, but in general, Avengers Doomsday! I did like the trailer as it did give us a decent idea of what to expect and I loved seeing the many returning characters from previous films! I cannot wait to see the movie, but while I could discuss the many things we see in the trailer, instead I decided to predict what may happen in the film. There's been a lot of controversy on the return of Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom and Chris Evans as Steve Rogers, and understandably so, as those two actors were given a proper ending in Avengers Endgame. However, if the filmmakers play their cards right, not only would it give us a great movie, but justify the return of the two cast members coming back. Spoilers for any MCU films I mention, along with potential spoilers for Avengers Doomsday, in case this may be true.
A few months ago, we found out that Chris Evans would return as Steve Rogers in Avengers Doomsday and many of us, myself included, weren't fond of this idea as it was pulling away attention from the other heroes, especially Sam Wilson as Captain America. Sam was given only a TV show and one movie to be Captain America, while Steve got a trilogy, four Avengers films and more experience, which is hugely unfair. That being said, while I'm still a bit skeptical on his return, some fans have been speculating that the Steve Rogers we see in the trailer for Doomsday isn't the one we're familiar with, but rather a variant that is part of Hydra, an evil organization introduced in Captain America: The First Avenger, which is set during the 1940s, that took over SHIELD later down the line. Yes, it's true we saw Steve lift Mjolnir, a weapon that can only be held by people who are worthy, but we also saw the Goddess of Death and villain, Hela from Thor Ragnarok, hold Mjolnir as well. We never saw her use it per say, but she did destroy Mjolnir with ease and was shown to be holding it in a mural next to her father, Odin.
This sounds insane, and it is, but the thing is that Marvel may have already teased that idea a couple of years ago with Deadpool and Wolverine. In case anyone has forgotten, Chris Evans did return in the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Deadpool and Wolverine, but not as Captain America. Instead, as Human Torch/Johnny Storm, who he played as before in the two Fantastic Four films directed by Tim Story under 20th Century Fox (Now owned by Disney). When Deadpool and Wolverine are sent into the Void by the TVA's Mr. Paradox, the first person they encounter there is who Deadpool believes to be Steve Rogers/Captain America, as he looks exactly like him, giving Deadpool some hope. A group of deserters in the Void led by Pyro comes in to attack the heroes, and almost immediately, Deadpool finds out that it's Johnny Storm instead of Captain America, as he says, "Flame on" rather than "Avengers Assemble," much to his surprise. Sadly, Johnny loses the fight with Pyro quickly, leading to their capture.
With Chris Evans coming back once again, it looks like they may pull the same move in Doomsday, where you think it's Steve Rogers, only to pull the rug from underneath us. But instead of it being played for laughs, it will raise the stakes when we least expect it. In the trailer for Avengers Doomsday, Steve is seen as a miracle to save the day for the heroes, particularly Thor, in their battle with Doctor Doom. However, at their most desperate hour, Steve will backstab the heroes, revealing himself to be a part of Hydra and Doom's team, or at least willing to work alongside him. He'll be the reason why the heroes will fail, their "Doomsday" if you want to call it that.
What makes it likely is that the line "Hail Hydra" was said by Steve in Avengers Endgame, albeit as a trick to have the Hydra agents give Loki's scepter to him in the Avengers' time heist, as the scepter had the Mind Stone. The Marvel Cinematic Universe has great uses of foreshadowing through dialogue and action, and with Avengers Endgame kind of playing with the Multiverse, it would be an amazing payoff to a minor piece of dialogue that doesn't seem like much at the moment, only for it to matter later down the line. Not to mention it has basis for it in the comics, though I'm not too familiar with the storyline, save for that infamous comic panel where Captain America says, "Hail Hydra." The idea of Steve Rogers becoming the enemy he has sworn to take down ever since his time becoming Captain America would not be only tragic, but an effective way to show the Avengers and other heroes on how dangerous the Multiverse really is.
The Multiverse Saga has explored seeing multiple versions of certain characters, most notably Loki, Spider-Man, Doctor Strange, and a bunch of characters in What If? But we rarely saw evil versions of the heroes, with some exceptions. Having evil versions of characters we're familiar with, like Steve Rogers and Doctor Doom, who I'm assuming will look like Iron Man/Tony Stark underneath the mask, encounter the heroes and both them and the audience least expect it would be a brilliant way to create tension and subvert audience's expectations. This is more than likely the reasoning behind the casting of RDJ as Doom, as we may see what will happen when the original Avengers, albeit variants of them, are the greatest threat the heroes encounter.
One of the most common complaints mentioned earlier is that the return of Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Evans feels like a desperate ploy to get the audience's attention rather than use what they already have to tell a new story. The concerns are fair, but here's something to consider: We have never seen Robert Downey Jr and Chris Evans play as villains in the franchise. They've been heroes since the beginning (Admittedly RDJ as Iron Man was flawed but he was more good than bad). I have no doubt their paychecks were massive, but those actors don't seem to be sellouts in any regard, so why else would Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Evans return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe if there wasn't something intriguing to play with? The criticisms with Robert Downey Jr's casting as Doctor Doom are warranted, but if any of what I'm writing here is true, then there's a chance it may work and the risk the filmmakers are taking with the casting hopefully pay off.
Now let's discuss the elephant in the room: Kang The Conqueror. For anyone who has forgotten or missed out on the news, initially, Marvel Studios was planning to have Kang be the next "Thanos" after the Infinity Saga, even with the Avengers movie being called "The Kang Dynasty." However, plans fell apart due to the real-life legal situation with Jonathan Majors, along with the poor reception of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. As unfortunate as it is and recasting Kang would have been the easier option, in retrospect, it seemed to be the better choice, as Kang, albeit variants of him, lost twice in Loki and Quantumania, diluting any threat he has to the Avengers. And if my theory is correct, the idea of the heroes fighting a version of the Avengers that are evil sounds more compelling and emotional than fighting Thanos 2.0.
Another thing to note is that there's been criticisms that Avengers Doomsday feels as if there's been no proper build-up to it. Again, I do understand why it feels that way, as the films and shows felt a bit uneven with its connectivity and quality, but what if that's the idea behind this movie? Hear me out: None of the heroes are familiar with the Multiverse, save for Spider-Man, Doctor Strange, and America Chavez, but as far as we know, they're not in the film. Thor, Ant-Man, Captain America, the New Avengers, Shang-Chi, the Fantastic Four, the Wakandans, they've all dealt with massive threats and enemies, but something that's from the Multiverse, that is something they've never dealt with before. The idea of heroes we've just met dealing with something that's even bigger than Endgame is insane, but in a way that has potential to work as not only does it give us an easy way to root for these characters but to truly test their abilities and character growth.
Speaking of which, if the prediction of Steve Rogers being Hydra Captain America are correct, it would give Sam Wilson an opportunity to shine. While it is frustrating that Sam Wilson hasn't been given as much time to the role of Captain America, he has proven himself to be worthy of the mantle, as he has fought the Flag Smashers in Falcon and Winter Soldier, and Red Hulk in Captain America Brave New World. What makes Sam stand out from Steve, aside from his wingsuit, is that he is shown to be compassionate towards his opponents, most notably when he fought Red Hulk, as to quote Sam, "If we can't see the good in each other, we've already lost the fight." Sam's empathy and compassion for his enemies is a great asset to him, but it can be used against him once he realizes his friend or in this case, a variant of him has sided with the enemy. Sam's time may have been short as Captain America, but that doesn't mean he can't make an impact and what's a better challenge than going up against the original Captain America that's evil?
One of the most fascinating aspects is seeing the Avengers fight the X-Men. It looks amazing and a fanboy's dream come true, but the thing is why are the two superhero teams fighting each other, when clearly Doctor Doom is the threat? I have a feeling that either Doom or Steve or whoever else is manipulating the two teams to fight one another in order to achieve their goals, much like how Babadi wanted Vegeta (with Babadi's mind control) to fight Goku in Dragon Ball Z, so Majin Buu can wake up and start their destruction. From what I'm hearing based on fan theories and what was established in Doctor Strange In The Multiverse of Madness, it looks like an Incursion, when the boundary between two universes erodes and collides, destroying either one or both of the universes. But what would Doom gain from that?
In the trailer that was shown at San Diego Comic Con earlier this year, Sue Storm/Invisible Woman says that Doom used to be a kind man, until he lost everything. More than likely, Doom lost everything due to Steve Rogers, the one seen in Avengers Endgame, staying with Peggy via time travel/Multiversal travel. As Tony Stark/Iron Man said, "When you mess with time, it tends to mess back," as Doom lost everyone and everything he has built, only to find out that it was caused by Steve Rogers. Believing that the heroes are living stolen lives, as that's what Doom says in the SDCC trailer, Doom goes through hell and back to figure out how to get his life fixed, looking into the Dark Arts and other sinister means. Not only does he find out about Incursions, but Doom also finds out about the Multiverse.
Doom notices how much chaos there has been throughout the Multiverse, from the events of Loki to Multiverse of Madness and other Multiversal level threats. In order to maintain the chaos that's been happening throughout the Multiverse, Doom takes it upon himself to control the Multiverse and regardless of the outcome as long as it benefits him, forces the heroes to fight each other in order to save their respective universes by starting an Incursion. Some will fight, which may be led by Hydra Cap to throw off the Avengers, while others attempt to figure out another solution. This idea would present some incredible action and a fight for everyone's survival but sounds more like the appetizer for the final battle, which is of course, the battle with Doctor Doom. I'm sure there's more to it or something else entirely, but I have no doubt the fight with the Avengers and X-Men is more of a way to distract the heroes from Doom.
Marvel Studios and Disney know that the Marvel Cinematic Universe isn't as popular as it was back a few years ago, as the movies haven't been as profitable and the reviews aren't as consistently positive. If Doomsday fails, this will screw over not only the next movie, Secret Wars, but potentially screw over the whole Marvel Cinematic Universe. There's so much riding on this movie that I cannot imagine the pressure that the filmmakers are feeling, but with the directors being the Russo Brothers, who worked on some of the best films in the franchise like Infinity War and Endgame, having a solid writing crew (One of them being Stephen McFeely, who was part of writing Infinity War and Endgame), and a phenomenal cast, it does give me some confidence that they'll pull off this ambitious movie. The quality of the films leading up to Doomsday may have been uneven, but to quote Beast from X-Men '97 season 2, "Life is not always a matter of holding good cards but sometimes playing a poor hand well. Jack London."
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