‘Avengers: Doomsday’ will see the return of Robert Downey Jr., Tom Hiddleston; Wyatt Russell, Pedro Pascal join the cast

The Avengers are assembling again.

Robert Downey Jr. leads the returning cast members. As he first revealed at the San Diego Comic-Con in 2024, he will be playing villain Dr. Victor von Doom instead of Iron Man. 

More returning cast members include Tom Hiddleston as Loki; Chris Hemsworth as Thor; Paul Rudd as Scott Lang or Ant-Man; Anthony Mackie as Sam Wilson or the new Captain America; Sebastian Stan as Bucky Barnes or Winter Soldier; Danny Ramirez as Joaquin Torres or the new Falcon; and Simu Liu as Shang-Chi.

“Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” cast members Letitia Wright as Shuri or the new Black Panther; Winston Duke as M’Baku; and Tenoch Huerta Mejía as Namor will also be returning.

“Avengers: Doomsday” will also feature the cast from the “X-Men” films, including Ian McKellen as Magneto; Patrick Stewart as Professor Charles Xavier; Kelsey Grammer as Beast; Alan Cumming as Nightcrawler; James Marsden as Cyclops; Channing Tatum as Gambit; and Rebecca Romijn as Mystique.

The cast of the upcoming film “The Fantastic Four: First Steps” will also be appearing with Pedro Pascal as Mr. Fantastic; Vanessa Kirby as the Invisible Woman, Joseph Quinn as Human Torch; and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as the Thing.

“Thunderbolts*” stars Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova; David Harbour as Red Guardian; Wyatt Russell as U.S. Agent; Hannah John-Kamen as Ghost; and Lewis Pullman as Bob will also make an appearance.

“Avengers: Doomsday” is set to be released in 2026 and is directed by Joe and Anthony Russo, or the Russo brothers. They will also be directing “Avengers: Secret Wars” to be released in 2027.

It is the first Avengers movie since “Avengers: Endgame” in 2019, which concluded Phase 1 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

As loud and stellar as the names are, the announcement came as quietly. The five-and-a-half-hour YouTube livestream featured the camera panning on empty chairs with the actors’ names printed on the back. it ended with the only actor present, RDJ, sitting on final chair, making a “shhh” expression, before walking out. — Nika Roque/LA, GMA Integrated News