After Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, it looked like the Russo Brothers' time in the MCU had ended. They left to focus on AGBO, their own movie studio, but repeatedly said they might be tempted back for Avengers: Secret Wars.
That movie was announced in 2022, minus Joe and Anthony Russo, but a hit-and-miss Multiverse Saga has seen them brought back into the fold for that and Avengers: Doomsday.
Original plans called for Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings director Destin Daniel Cretton to helm what was then called Avengers: The Kang Dynasty. Plans changed following Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania and the Jonathan Majors controversy, and Cretton has moved on to Spider-Man 4.
As part of the Multiverse Saga's overhaul, Robert Downey Jr. is returning to the MCU as Doctor Doom.
Discussing that reunion with GamesRadar+ at MCM Comic Con 2024, Joe said, "We're all very close. We had been working on another project before Marvel approached all of us - so we're working on another project with Robert - and there was a story that evolved through conversations that we got very excited about. Because it's always got to be the story."
We still don't know how Marvel Studios will justify Downey's return or how Victor Von Doom's similarity to Tony Stark will be explained (if, indeed, it's explained at all). Despite that, the filmmaker remains confident that these movies will deliver a worthwhile story.
"Why would we come back if we didn't feel like we had a story that had that possibility of being on an equal footing with Infinity War and Endgame unless there's a kernel there for an idea that's really explosive?" Joe asked.
There are lots of rumours swirling about plans for the two-parter, though the current expectation is that Spider-Man will be Doomsday's lead, with the focus on his and Doom's dynamic (likely a result of the villain sharing a face with Peter Parker's fallen mentor).
If Marvel Studios and the Russos plan to follow the comics, that movie is likely going to conclude with the creation of a new "Battleworld" reality that makes Secret Wars a full-blown Multiverse story packed full of Variants.
Shooting begins next year on Doomsday and, if we're really lucky, set photos will offer some clues about what's to come a couple of years from now.
Avengers: Doomsday is set to be released in May 2026, with Avengers: Secret Wars scheduled to arrive in May 2027.