As we're sure you're aware by now, Marvel Studios kicked off production on Avengers: Doomsday earlier this week with a nearly six-hour casting announcement.
In a video posted on YouTube and social media, 27 chairs were revealed with both expected and unexpected names on them. However, while the movie will feature several Avengers and even an exciting lineup of X-Men, many fans are more concerned with the names that didn't make the cut.
There was no Tom Holland, Chris Evans, Jeremy Renner, Chris Pratt, Hugh Jackman, Ryan Reynolds, or Charlie Cox, and that brief list barely scratches the surface! Now, we may have some new insights into why the event - which racked up 275 million views - didn't reveal Avengers: Doomsday's entire cast.
According to scooper Daniel Richtman, Marvel Studios only shared some of the names we'll see in the 2026 release because there are plans for a bigger reveal when shooting starts.
He'd later elaborate by explaining, "About Avengers Doomsday, production [has] started but NOT filming. They're still building sets. Filming only starts in April. And they STILL don't have a [finalised] script."
With some deals still not quite finished, Marvel Studios didn't want to share the names of actors who may not appear for one reason or another, and only named those who are officially part of Avengers: Doomsday's cast.
Based on that, we'd say the studio has some work to do because that X-Men team won't be complete without the likes of Jean Grey, Storm, and Wolverine. As for the movie not having a complete cast this late in the day, that's the norm for many of Marvel Studios' biggest titles, including Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.
Talking about his and Anthony's inspiration for Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars while promoting their Netflix movie The Electric State, Joe said, "Well, we always create our own version of the story. So, we use the comics as loose inspiration."
"But, you know, I grew up on the original run," he continued. "That's something that got me into Marvel comic books. The Hickman run is also fantastic [and they're] very different from each other in a lot of ways, so we'll draw inspiration from both of them."
Anthony added, "In terms of what we're drawing on for our storytelling, we take the comprehensive view of the MCU. So, without getting into anything more specific than that, this is the universe we're telling a story within. You can read into that what you like."
Avengers: Doomsday is set to be released in May 2026, with Avengers: Secret Wars scheduled to arrive in May 2027.