Avengers: Doomsday is currently shooting in Bahrain, and cinematographer Newton Thomas Sigel has shared a behind-the-scenes photo from the set that potentially reveals more than he intended.
A bus can be seen driving through the desert in the distance, and in the bottom left corner, we see someone who looks an awful lot like Winston Duke holding M'Baku's staff. We're not sure who he's talking to, but at first glance, it seems to be Letitia Wright (Shuri/Black Panther) and Simu Liu (Shang-Chi).
There's speculation that they're all standing in The Void; rumour has it that the wasteland sitting at the End of Time will play a key role in Avengers: Doomsday. Perhaps Captain America's team heads there to recruit Variants who can help them battle Doctor Doom?
The Marvel Studios production recently arrived in Bahrain, with Anthony Mackie, Letitia Wright, Tenoch Huerta, Danny Ramirez, Simu Liu, Winston Duke, and Hannah John-Kamen spotted alongside filmmaker Joe Russo and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever stars Mabel Cadena (Namora) and Alex Livinalli (Attuma).
With that in mind, this could also be the location of a meeting between Earth's Mightiest Heroes and Namor as they look to form an alliance with the Talokan (Atlantis) King, who, in the comics, has frequently teamed up with Doom.
For Duke, Avengers: Doomsday may serve as redemption, of a sort, after many of M'Baku's scenes in Avengers: Endgame were left on the cutting room floor. "The raw footage was just so long with everyone that my stuff didn’t make it in. I filmed so much fighting for it, and I was really bummed to not see any of it in the movie [Laughs]."
"I did so many fighting scenes in Endgame during that final battle where they’re trying to keep the gauntlet away from Thanos. It was really cool."
Duke, however, has no hard feelings. "Marvel knows what they’re doing, and it all leads to the best product. So, I am happy; I was just very disappointed that nobody got to see all the stuff I was doing," he added.
Avengers: Doomsday stars Chris Hemsworth, Anthony Mackie, Winston Duke, Tom Hiddleston, Sebastian Stan, Letitia Wright, Paul Rudd, and Robert Downey Jr. Wyatt Russell, Simu Liu, Tenoch Huerta Mejia, Florence Pugh, Danny Ramirez, David Harbour, Hannah John-Kamen, and Lewis Pullman all make the Avengers franchise debuts in the movie.
So do The Fantastic Four: First Steps leads Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Joseph Quinn, with X-Men franchise stars Kelsey Grammer, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Alan Cumming, Rebecca Romijn, James Marsden, and Channing Tatum set to join them.
Avengers: Doomsday is set to be released on December 18, 2026, with Avengers: Secret Wars scheduled to arrive on December 17, 2026. Check out the behind-the-scenes photo alongside a post from Prince Nasser Bin Hammad of the Bahraini Royal Family.