Who is in? Who is out? And how the hell will Robert Downey Jr. really figure in all of this? One person who had seemed to rule himself out of Avengers: Doomsday was Doctor Strange actor Benedict Cumberbatch. Or has he?
In a feature piece for Variety last week, he seemed to say he wasn’t expecting to be back in the next Avengers team-up. He said that he wasn’t needed in this instalment, but would be in the follow-up, Avengers: Secret Wars due in 2027.
Then he was at Sundance this past week to promote The Thing With Feathers. Business Insider asked him about this and he said:
“I got that wrong, I am in the next one.”
One person who is now unlikely to appear is Chris Evans as Captain America / Steve Rogers. There were a number of stories late last year that he was going to return to the role for these outings, however he has denied this multiple times.
A new Esquire article on Anthony Mackie seems to back this up. Mackie says he checked in with Evans after the news broke and Evans confirmed it is not true.
“I didn’t know! I talked to Chris a few weeks ago and it wasn’t on the table then. At least, he didn’t tell me it was on the table, because I asked him. I was like, ‘You know, they said they’re bringing everyone back for the movie. Are you coming back?’”
Evans confirmed that he is “happily retired” from Cap. Esquire then followed this up direct with Evans who confirmed:
“That’s not true, though. This always happens. I mean, it happens every couple years – ever since Endgame. I’ve just stopped responding to it.Yeah, no – happily retired!.”
Avengers: Doomsday starts shooting in the UK any day now, and is expected to focus mainly on Robert Downey Jr. as the famous Marvel villain. Mostly a Doom movie, with less focus on heroes. It will open in cinemas on May 2026. The production will then roll on to Avengers: Secret Wars for a 2027 release.