Marvel Studios' massive Avengers: Doomsday cast reveal promised fans an impressive mix of returning MCU heroes and Marvel Legacy characters last March. However, it also left fans scratching their heads over some glaring omissions.
While there are plenty of heroes widely rumoured or expected to appear—such as Deadpool, Wolverine, and Doctor Strange—this feature isn't about the characters we anticipate showing up unannounced. Instead, we're looking at six established MCU heroes who weren't included in the infamous chair reveal and still haven't been confirmed for the movie.
Given where we last saw these heroes and the Multiverse-spanning story Avengers: Doomsday appears to be telling, their respective absences is legitimately shocking.
Whether they're being kept secret or have truly been left on the sidelines remains to be seen (and for most, it seems to be the latter), but these are the characters we simply can't believe are set to miss the MCU's biggest battle yet...
6. America Chavez
One of the biggest omissions has to be Xochitl Gomez's America Chavez. We last saw the young hero at the end of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, training at Kamar-Taj under Wong after finally learning to control her incredible star-shaped portal powers.
Her entire skillset is built around traversing the Multiverse, making her one of the single most important characters for a story set to revolve around Doctor Doom, incursions, and alternate realities. While the Avengers are more than formidable enough to fight Doom, America is uniquely equipped to move heroes between universes and rescue characters stranded in dying realities.
Marvel Studios went to great lengths to establish her as the MCU's answer to interdimensional travel, so leaving America on the sidelines makes little sense. If anyone should be helping the heroes navigate a Multiversal war, it's America Chavez.
5. Spider-Man
In Spider-Man: No Way Home, Peter Parker made the heartbreaking decision to have Doctor Strange erase the world's memories of him to save the Multiverse. By the end of the movie, he was left completely alone, and we'll finally catch up with him in Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
Since 2016's Captain America: Civil War, Tom Holland's Spider-Man has typically been at the heart of the MCU's biggest crossover events. Beyond his popularity, intelligence, and leadership potential (now that he's finally moved on from being Tony Stark's protégé), it's hard to understand why Spidey isn't front and centre in Avengers: Doomsday with heroes who don't remember or necessarily trust him...which has immense storytelling potential.
Despite Spider-Man: Brand New Day releasing immediately before Avengers: Doomsday, it seems Marvel Studios will make us wait for Secret Wars to bring Peter into Doom's conflict. What that will look like remains to be seen.
4. She-Hulk
Love or hate the series, it's baffling to think that Jennifer Walters hasn't been seen since the finale of She-Hulk: Attorney at Law. In the series, she literally rewrote her own ending before settling back into life as both an attorney and a potential future superhero.
The finale's fourth-wall-breaking antics may divide opinion, but Jennifer herself remains one of the MCU's strongest new additions. She's a Hulk with all of Bruce Banner's intelligence and possesses superhuman strength that makes her capable of standing alongside the Avengers' heaviest hitters. She also offers a fresh perspective as a character who could bring a whole new feel to Earth's Mightiest Heroes' next team-up.
With The Hulk seemingly taken off the table after going savage in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, excluding She-Hulk from a world-ending event feels like a missed opportunity to further develop one of Marvel's newest Avengers into a major player moving forward.
3. Captain Marvel
Carol Danvers last appeared in The Marvels, helping save the Skrulls before reigniting Hala's dying sun. However, the movie's biggest development came in its closing moments when Monica Rambeau was left trapped in another universe following a Multiversal incursion.
That cliffhanger practically screams Avengers: Doomsday. Monica's fate is directly tied to the collapsing Multiverse, and Carol has every reason to risk everything trying to bring her friend home (remember, when we last saw the WandaVision lead, she'd woken up in the X-Men's headquarters).
Beyond the emotional stakes, Captain Marvel remains one of Earth's strongest heroes. If Doctor Doom is setting out to become Battleworld's ruler, then Carol should absolutely be involved in the fight against him as a member of Sam Wilson's Avengers. Instead, it seems she's been benched.
2. Star-Lord
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 ended with Peter Quill returning to Earth for the first time in decades, reconnecting with his grandfather as Marvel promised that "The Legendary Star-Lord Will Return." Well, exactly when is he returning?
Star-Lord has a history with the Avengers, and with his closest allies now scattered across the galaxy, Avengers: Doomsday is the perfect opportunity to reunite him with familiar faces while paying off that post-credits promise. Concept art has alluded to him living with Vision and mentoring the Young Avengers, but if his role is that major, why hasn't Chris Pratt's name been mentioned?
A movie as jam-packed as this one needs a little humour, and Star-Lord has repeatedly proven he can provide that without undermining the drama. Avengers: Doomsday is the right place to establish Peter's new role on Earth, so here's hoping he shows up.
1. Scarlet Witch
Whether Wanda Maximoff actually died beneath Mount Wundagore at the end of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness remains one of the MCU's biggest unanswered questions.
While she likely survived, Marvel Studios has remained deliberately vague about the Scarlet Witch's fate ever since (see: Agatha All Along). Crucially, her Chaos Magic and recent rampage through the Multiverse make her one of the few heroes who could realistically challenge Doctor Doom on equal footing.
Wanda's redemption arc remains unfinished, and Avengers: Doomsday offers the perfect chance to explore that. There are rumours about her falling under Doctor Doom's influence, so we may have to eat our words on this entry, but Marvel Studios has missed a trick by not teasing Wanda's grand return in this movie.