'Avengers: Doomsday' Director Reveals What Are the Major Challenges of MCU

During a question and answer session following a screening of Avengers: Endgame Encore, co-director Anthony Russo spoke about the difficulty of balancing the evolution of iconic Marvel characters with respect for what has already been built. For him, this is one of the most complex parts of the process.

"It's a very difficult part because we basically have to use our own gauges. We love the characters, we love the story, we love it in the same way that many fans do," Russo said. "But one thing we always like to remember is that the fandom doesn't speak with a single voice. There's a huge range of opinions about who responds to which characters and which versions of them. It's a very complex relationship."

Russo added that he and his brother, Joe Russo, have "a lot of respect for the narrative journey these characters have had so far." "That's part of their magic, a big part of it. But at the same time, we need to surprise ourselves in terms of who these characters are, where they can go, what they can do. By doing that, we hope to surprise the audience as well."

Everything you need to know about Avengers: Doomsday

The villain of the fifth Avengers movie will be Doctor Doom, played by Robert Downey Jr., the actor who portrayed the legendary Iron Man in the MCU's Infinity Saga and now takes on the role of the antagonist. Avengers: Doomsday will be directed by brothers Anthony and Joe Russo (Endgame), with a script by Michael Waldron (Loki) and Stephen McFreely (Endgame).

Marvel has already confirmed the main cast members for the new film, in one of the biggest MCU star reunions ever assembled. Returning from previous Avengers films are: Chris Evans as Steve Rogers, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Anthony Mackie as Captain America, Sebastian Stan as the Winter Soldier, Paul Rudd as Ant-Man, Winston Duke as M'Baku, and Letitia Wright as Shuri/Black Panther.

Among characters introduced after Avengers: Endgame — in phases 4 and 5 of the MCU — we have Simu Liu as Shang-Chi, Danny Ramirez as Falcon, the entire new Fantastic Four (Pedro Pascal as Mister Fantastic, Vanessa Kirby as Invisible Woman, Joseph Quinn as Human Torch, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as the Thing), almost the entire cast of Thunderbolts* (Florence Pugh as Yelena, Wyatt Russell as U.S. Agent, David Harbour as Red Guardian, Hanah John-Kamen as Ghost, and Lewis Pullman as Bob, the Sentry), and Tenoch Huerta as Namor.

The film also features the return of the classic X-Men from the old Fox movies, including Patrick Stewart as Professor X, Ian McKellen as Magneto, James Marsden as Cyclops, Alan Cumming as Nightcrawler, Kelsey Grammer as Beast, Rebecca Romijn as Mystique, and, introduced in Deadpool & Wolverine, Channing Tatum as Gambit.

Avengers: Doomsday opens on December 18, 2026.