Marvel Studios dropped a few exciting surprises during the Avengers: Doomsday cast reveal, including the return of some familiar faces from 20th Century Fox's X-Men franchise. There were some major omissions, though, and even with production underway, it feels like this ensemble is far from complete.
Kevin Feige has since confirmed it wasn't the full cast, and one of the most disappointing omissions remains Daredevil: Born Again star Charlie Cox.
As part of Marvel Television's Daredevil and The Defenders on Netflix (an endeavour Feige had little involvement with), Cox was kept away from the MCU until finally being brought back several years later for a Spider-Man: No Way Home cameo. He later showed up in She-Hulk: Attorney at Law and Echo, and recently took centre stage in Daredevil: Born Again.
Unfortunately, it's starting to feel like the new Marvel Television will also run largely independently from Marvel Studios, potentially leaving the Man Without Fear once again relegated to being a streaming superhero.
Cox and Daredevil deserve to share the screen with Earth's Mightiest Heroes. Unfortunately, the actor has once again denied that he'll appear in Avengers: Doomsday during a recent interaction with a fan:
You can't get much more definitive than "no." Cox has been a good sport about it, though, and previously said, "Listen, the way that information gets to us is the same way that it gets to everyone else normally. At least historically, that's been the case. Someone sent me the link. I looked for my name. It's not there. So, maybe one day [Laughs]."
It's a real shame that Cox won't be given the chance to assemble alongside the rest of Earth's Mightiest Heroes, though the Russo Brothers might have some surprises in store for us (and Avengers: Secret Wars is up next, remember).
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.
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, and Deadpool & Wolverine star Channing Tatum.
The Russo Brothers direct the movie from a script by Stephen McFeely, with whom they previously collaborated on the Captain America and Avengers franchises.
Avengers: Doomsday is set to be released on December 18, 2026, with Avengers: Secret Wars scheduled to arrive on December 17, 2027.