Avengers: Doomsday boasts a stacked cast, but there are many noteworthy omissions from across the MCU. A few additional actors have been confirmed since that chair reveal last March, but for whatever reason, Marvel Studios is keeping several big names under wraps.
That could be because they're simply not in the movie or because the actors featured in the casting announcement are the leads. If it's the latter, that's a risky move on the studio's part, as many of those characters have been front and centre in Multiverse Saga projects, which significantly underperformed.
The "Avengers" branding alone is enough of a selling point, but building a movie around characters like Sam Wilson, Shang-Chi, and the New Avengers is certainly a choice when it would surely make more sense for Deadpool, Wolverine, and Spider-Man to be front and centre.
Time will tell on that front, and there are plenty of heavy-hitters, including Chris Hemsworth's Thor. The God of Thunder is getting serious again after 2022's goofy Thor: Love and Thunder, and it seems some familiar faces could lend a hand in the fight against Doctor Doom.
According to insider @MyTimeToShineH, "Natalie Portman and Idris Elba have a cameo in Avengers: Doomsday as they help Thor fight Doom's army at the final battle."
This presumably means we'll see Portman back as the Mighty Thor, with Elba once again donning Heimdall's armour. If the Russo Brothers follow the comics and bring the Thor Corps into Avengers: Secret Wars, then even more than that cameo could be planned for Portman.
Hemsworth will be joined in Avengers: Doomsday by his 13-year-old daughter, India Rose Hemsworth, who reprises the role of Love. Reflecting on that, the actor previously said, "She walks on set, and she’s like, 'How long is this gonna take?' I was like 'We haven’t even started!'"
"And then we’d go and do the first take, big wide shot, and she’s like 'Ah, are we done?' 'No, we’ve got another two or three days.' She’s like 'Oh god.' Just this angsty, sort of teenager attitude. In the end, I had to bribe her to come onto set," he continued, revealing that he bought her a motorcycle she had her eye on. "So, a slight negotiation, and then off she went."
Who would you like to see make a surprise appearance in Avengers: Doomsday this December?
In Avengers: Doomsday, beloved heroes from three distinct universes will be set on a deadly collision course and face an existential threat unlike anything they’ve ever encountered.
Avengers: Doomsday stars Chris Evans, 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, Mabel Cadena, Florence Pugh, Danny Ramirez, David Harbour, Hannah John-Kamen, Lewis Pullman, India Rose Hemsworth, and Wesley Holloway all make their Avengers franchise debuts.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps leads Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Joseph Quinn join them, as do X-Men franchise stars Kelsey Grammer, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Alan Cumming, Rebecca Romijn, James Marsden, with Deadpool & Wolverine star Channing Tatum.
The Russo Brothers direct Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars from a screenplay by Stephen McFeely, with whom they previously collaborated on the Avengers and Captain America franchises. The movie is produced by Kevin Feige, Louis D'Esposito, and Jonathan Schwartz, with Callum McDougall serving as executive producer.
Avengers: Doomsday is set to be released on December 18.