Marvel Studios is expected to pull back the curtain on Avengers: Doomsday at next month's San Diego Comic-Con. The first trailer will likely drop during a huge Hall H panel, with merchandise not far behind (Hot Toys will reveal its first wave of figures on July 31).
While we wait for some official news, scooper @Cryptic4KQual has shared some exciting rumours in an X Q&A about how the movie is shaping up.
Starting with Doctor Doom, the insider said that, while he doesn't have "multiple" masks in the movie, "he does have another costume." Confirming Doom has green powers, he later noted that it "doesn't mean he doesn't have other skill sets that portray other colours."
This could explain toys showing Doom using red energy blasts, similar to those of the Scarlet Witch. Asked what kind of Victor Von Doom we're getting, he pointed out, "Seems like the classic Doom to me. Manipulative, calculating, smart, pragmatic. I think people would love that he is exactly like his comic counterpart."
Something the prolific runtime and trailer leaker believes will also impress fans is that, "95% of the time when you see him, it's [Robert Downey Jr.] in costume."
Over to the Fantastic Four, and Marvel's First Family will reportedly have a "big" role in Avengers: Doomsday, with "a good portion of the film" set on Earth-828. And, back to Doom for a moment, he and Mister Fantastic "definitely have history."
Now, the bad news: Chris Evans' Steve Rogers will not wear his Captain America uniform in the movie, and while he may get that and his shield in Avengers: Secret Wars, Mjolnir will be his weapon of choice in this December's outing.
The scooper writes, "Steve is very central to the plot. [He] and Thor are the figures for stabilising and rallying the teams. Their presence, especially Steve's, immediately sets a serious tone in the film."
Rumours have swirled for a while about Deadpool and Wolverine battling Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man during Avengers: Doomsday's opening, and we now have a little more context. "Deadpool's world is likely one of the many in the chain to be incursioned early on. Otherwise, he and Wolvie wouldn't be doing the X-Men's dirty work," he told a follower, later suggesting Jean Grey might be among the X-Men who have fallen in previous Incursions.
As for Spidey, "It is Raimiverse Spider-Man. It's the end of the Multiverse. We are making stops at universes we already know and love. It would make no sense and be a tremendous waste to have it be a Variant."
Some fans might counter that it's a waste to have Spidey show up and die without meeting the Avengers and Fantastic Four, but at least Tom Holland's MCU future looks bright. The odds of him getting the Symbiote in Spider-Man: Brand New Day or Avengers: Secret Wars are said to be "very likely."
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.