10 More Characters Who Could Appear In 'Avengers: Doomsday'

MCU fans were delighted recently with an extended online livestream announcing the official core cast of Avengers: Doomsday, and that the film, currently scheduled for release on May 1, 2026, has entered production. While the cast we got is relatively large, covering characters from the last two phases of the MCU, as well as a few Fox-verse surprises, some fans were disappointed to find a few expected returns and fan favourites missing from the line-up.

However, hope is not lost, thanks to the following cheeky exchange in the Instagram comments of the announcement:

So, which as yet unannounced characters are still likely to appear in Avengers: Doomsday?

1. Monica Rambeau/Photon

During the climax of The Marvels, Monica Rambeau seals the tear Dar-Benn caused in the universe, but is trapped on the wrong side of it in the process. The film's post credits scene reveals she is in a universe where the X-Men exist, and she wakes to encounter the X-Man Beast, and a variant of her Mother, Maria Rambeau, known there as Binary. Given the use of a piece of score from X-Men: Days of Future Past, some fans believe these events are taking place in the altered timeline created by Wolverine's tweaking of the past in that film.

Kelsey Grammer, who played Beast in X-Men: The Last Stand and for a brief uncredited cameo in Days of Future Past, reprised the role in the above scene in The Marvels, and is now one of the legacy Fox-verse cast members confirmed to appear in Doomsday. Beast's previous appearance alongside Monica has led some fans to believe that Doomsday may pick up Monica's story. If so, it's a safe bet that Lashana Lynch will also return as Maria's Binary variant.

2. Storm

Whether in comics, animation, or live action, Ororo Monroe, aka the weather Goddess Storm, is easily one of the most beloved and iconic X-Men characters. Oscar winner Halle Berry, who played Storm in all three films in the original X-Men trilogy, and reprised the role in Days of Future Past, was widely considered to be an almost perfect casting choice.

Berry is not currently confirmed among the legacy Fox-verse actors to appear in Doomsday, but she has expressed a willingness to return for the right story, and recent humours have suggested she is close to signing a contract. Considering that Doomsday and Secret Wars are the climax of the Multiverse Saga, the question could then be raised as to whether Berry would play only Fox-verse Storm, or potentially appear as variants of the character, like those seen in X-Men '97 and What If..?.

3. Jean Grey/Phoenix

Famke Janssen appeared as the first Jean Grey in the original trilogy of X-Men films. After being overwhelmed by the Phoenix Force, the character was initially killed off in X-Men: The Last Stand, allowing Wolverine to kill her to spare the world from the Phoenix's wrath. Janssen reprised the role in a cameo in Days of Future Past, apparently revived by Wolverine's altering of history, but she is dead again by the semi-dystopic future of Logan, implied to have been accidentally killed by one of Professor Xavier's Dementia-induced telepathic seizures.

Sophie Turner of Game of Thrones fame played a teenage Jean Grey in the prequel/divergent timeline seen in X-Men: Apocalypse and X-Men: Dark Phoenix. Turner's Jean similarly dies via heroic sacrifice in Dark Phoenix's final act.

Neither actress was named among Doomsday's current cast, and considering the legacy actors are all from the original trilogy, not the prequel timeline, a return appearance from Turner seems especially unlikely.

However, James Marsden, who played X-Men leader and Jean's main love interest Scott Summers/Cyclops is confirmed to appear in Doomsday, and recently, Marsden and Janssen posed for a photograph together at a pre-Oscars event. Some fans are wondering whether the snap was teasing the return of Janssen's Jean Grey.

4. Wolverine

In 2000, Hugh Jackman became a household name when he took on the role of Wolverine in the first X-Men film. Though initially hanging up the claws after Logan in 2017, Jackman made a triumphant return to his iconic character in 2024 in Deadpool and Wolverine.

Jackman plays an alternate version of Wolverine, recruited by Deadpool to try and save his universe from destruction after the death of it's anchor being, the original Fox-verse Wolverine, in Logan. By the end of the film, the universe has stabilised, suggesting the alternate Wolverine has proved himself as a successful replacement anchor.

While there are plenty of jokes regarding Disney trapping Jackman in the role to old age, there was no sign of him in the Doomsday cast. However, the comic version of 'Secret Wars' includes Doom stealing the powers of Nexus beings (the comic equivalent of an anchor), leading some fans to believe Wolverine could still factor into the story.

5. Cassie Lang

Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania earned a lukewarm reception from critics, and some fans have deemed the movie pointless now that Marvel have had to pivot away from the Kang the Conqueror storyline in light of Jonathan Majors' legal troubles. Despite this, Paul Rudd has been confirmed to return as Scott Lang/Ant-Man in Avengers: Doomsday, and fans believe it unlikely that he will be there alone.

While Evangeline Lilly, who plays Scott's usual partner Hope Van Dyne/The Wasp, is currently taking a hiatus from acting, Quantumania ended with Scott accepting, albeit reluctantly, that his daughter, Cassie, is ready to embark on her own journey into heroism. Therefore, some fans are expecting to see Cassie step up as her Dad's new crimefighting partner in Doomsday.

If this is the case, it would act as a nice throwback to the above scene from Ant-Man and The Wasp.

6. Wong

Apart from Tom Hiddleston's return as Loki, fans were surprised not to see any other magic users among Doomsday's returning cast, especially since Doctor Doom is a highly skilled Sorceror in the comics. Benedict Cumberbatch, who plays Doctor Strange, confused the matter further by first claiming he was not going to be in Doomsday, before backtracking and saying that he would in fact appear in the movie. Fans of the Scarlet Witch are also eagerly awaiting news of her return to the MCU.

While it's possible that the MCU's A-list magic users will not appear in Doomsday and instead be saved for a Secret Wars showdown, that still leaves Wong. For a while, Wong almost became the new Stan Lee, appearing in more Phase Four projects than he did not appear in, and cementing his status as a fan favourite. As the MCU's current Sorceror Supreme, it would make sense for Wong to step in when a powerful and dangerous magic user such as Doom emerges.

7. Peggy Carter

While she is now a mainstay of the MCU, appearing as Peggy Carter and her variants in every Phase across many different stages of Peggy's life, Hayley Atwell has not yet appeared in an Avengers film, save a brief cameo in Age of Ultron, and is not, currently, on Doomsday's confirmed cast list. Despite that, reports and rumours persist that Atwell will appear in the film.

As the elderly Peggy of Earth-616 passed away offscreen early in Captain America: Civil War, many fans believe Atwell could appear as her super soldier 'Captain Carter' variant.

While the most prominent Captain Carter disappears in the What If..? Season three finale, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness has already proven that she was not the only Captain Carter. We could see another similar variant.. perhaps one who is her world's Anchor.

8. Kate Bishop

Following her introduction in the Hawkeye series, Kate Bishop, played by Hailee Steinfeld, quickly became a favourite. Fans especially enjoyed Kate's comedic chemistry with Yelena Belova, and have been looking forward to seeing the two characters share the screen again. So, they were understandably somewhat disappointed not to see Steinfeld's name among Doomsday's returning cast.

However, hope is not lost. At a recent event, when asked if she was in the upcoming Avengers film, Steinfeld replied:

"Yes!"

She almost immediately regretted this, indicating that she was not supposed to reveal this information, but the cat is out of the bag.

9. Spider-Man

One of the most notable big-name absences from the Doomsday cast was Tom Holland as Peter Parker/Spider-Man. Considering No Way Home was one of the best received projects of the last two Phases, omitting him seems an odd choice.

Spidey's absence has also proved confusing, due to recent reports that a masked double would be standing in for Spider-Man on the Doomsday set while Holland was filming Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey, indicating that the character would be in the film. Some fans have subsequently come to the conclusion that, if he does show up, Spider-Man's role in Doomsday will be too small for a main cast spot. He may simply appear in a cameo teasing Secret Wars or Spider-Man: Brand New Day, which is scheduled for release between the two Avengers films.

10. The Scarlet Witch

Already an ensemble dark horse, Elizabeth Olsen's starring role as Wanda Maximoff/The Scarlet Witch in WandaVision, and villain turn in Multiverse of Madness, have made her a bonafide fan favourite. While Wanda supposedly died in Multiverse of Madness, few believe this is truly he case, although the character is yet to reappear, and Olsen was not on the released Doomsday cast list.

Despite Olsen's absence on the list, many fans are adamant that she could still appear, as the Scarlet Witch has become a great rival of Doom's in comics. Olsen has also been spotted in London, where the bulk of Avengers: Doomsday is set to film.

Hopefully, we'll get a few pleasant surprises when the film is released next year.