With the release of Captain America: Brave New World earlier in February, Thunderbolts* is the only big-screen feature left to cap off Phase Five of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), marking an apt time to examine its future. Directing brothers Anthony and Joe Russo have offered a brief insight into their plans, highlighting the significance of the role that Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars will play in shaping a path forward.
Speaking to Brazilian outlet Omelete, the pair described the upcoming films as “a new beginning” set to usher in Phase 7, establishing a parallel to Avengers: Infinity War and its sequel Endgame, which closed out the Infinity Saga.
“The greatest thing that ever happened is we got to get immersed in a 20-movie arc and see an ending to that arc,” said Joe. “What’s compelling about these two new Avengers movies is they’re a beginning. It’s a new beginning. We told an ending story [with Infinity War and Endgame] and now we’re going to tell a beginning story. Who knows where we’ll go from there?”
A long road lies ahead, however. Avengers: Doomsday is slated for theatrical release on 1 May 2026, with Secret Wars arriving a year later in May 2027. Robert Downey Jr. will return to play Doctor Doom in the former film, marking a full circle for the actor who first depicted Tony Stark in 2008’s Iron Man — the leap of faith that kickstarted the MCU.
“The only thing I’ll say about the movie is this: we love villains who think they’re the heroes of their own stories,” concludes Joe in the interview. “That’s when they become three-dimensional and they become more interesting. When you have an actor like Robert Downey, you have to create a three-dimensional, well-shaped character for the audience. That’s where a lot of our focus is going.”
While previously announced, Secret Wars currently has no director attached, but fans can expect appearances from the X-Men in the movie. Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige previously confirmed that there will be some familiar mutant faces, though specifics were kept under wraps.
“I think you will see that continues in our next few movies with some X-Men players that you might recognise,” he said during Disney’s APAC Content Showcase in Singapore last year. “Right after that, the whole story of Secret Wars really leads us into a new age of mutants and of the X-Men. Again, [it’s] one of those dreams come true. We finally have the X-Men back.”
Si Jia is a casual geek at heart – or as casual as someone with Sephiroth’s theme on her Spotify playlist can get. A fan of movies, games, and Japanese culture, Si Jia’s greatest weakness is the Steam Summer Sale. Or any Steam sale, really.
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