Russo Brothers: Avengers' Doomsday and Secret Wars Mark MCU's New Beginning

The future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is taking shape with the announcement of two new Avengers films, *Avengers: Doomsday* and *Avengers: Secret Wars*. Directors Anthony and Joe Russo, who previously helmed *Avengers: Infinity War* and *Avengers: Endgame*, have shared insights on how these upcoming films will differ from their past projects. In an interview with Brazilian outlet Omelete, the Russo brothers described *Avengers 5* and *Avengers 6* as a "new beginning" that will set the stage for Phase 7 of the MCU.

Joe Russo emphasized the completion of a 20-movie arc with *Infinity War* and *Endgame*, saying, "The greatest thing that ever happened is we got to get immersed in a 20 movie arc and see an ending to that arc. 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 Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame] and now we're going to tell a beginning story. Who knows where we’ll go from there?"

The Russo brothers also discussed their return to the Marvel world. Anthony Russo shared, "We didn’t know what our road forward was in the MCU after we finished Endgame. What happened was, a creative idea just came to us and that ended up feeling like the right idea. It motivated us to do it again. We feel like we have something fresh, we feel like we have a story that’s important and needs to be told. We have an amazing group of collaborators again, some old and some new. We’re very excited."

Joe Russo highlighted the challenges of *Avengers: Doomsday*, noting the high expectations placed on the film to rejuvenate theater attendance post-pandemic. He also revealed that Marvel producer Kevin Feige proposed bringing back Robert Downey Jr. for *Doomsday*. Joe explained, "That conversation was had a while ago, and Robert tried to talk us into doing it and we said no. We just didn’t have a story, we didn’t have a way in, so we were resistant for a while. And then one day, [Endgame writer] Steve McFeely called us and said, ‘I have an idea.’"

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Joe Russo concluded the interview by discussing the importance of well-developed villains, stating, "The only thing I’ll say about the movie is this: we love villains who think they’re the heroes of their own stories. 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."

*Avengers: Doomsday* is slated for release on May 1, 2026, with *Avengers: Secret Wars* following in May 2027. Fans will have to wait to see what the Russo brothers have in store.

Meanwhile, Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige has teased the introduction of X-Men characters in upcoming MCU films. Speaking at the Disney APAC Content Showcase in Singapore, Feige mentioned that fans would see "some X-Men players that you might recognize" in the near future, though he did not specify which characters or films. He added, "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."

Feige further emphasized the importance of the X-Men in the MCU's future post-*Secret Wars*, saying, "When we were preparing for Avengers: Endgame years ago, it was a question of getting to the grand finale of our narrative, and then we had to start all over again after that. This time, on the road to Secret Wars, we already know very well what the story is going to be until then and afterwards. The X-Men are an important part of that future."

Phase 7 of the MCU appears set to be dominated by the X-Men, with Storm already making an appearance in *What If...? Season 3*. Additionally, Marvel Studios has added three untitled movie projects to its 2028 release schedule: February 18, 2028; May 5, 2028; and November 10, 2028. It's speculated that one of these could be an X-Men film.