The story of Avengers: Doomsday, which is set to see Robert Downey Jr. return to the MCU as Victor von Doom himself.
As alluded to, though, projects like Loki and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania heavily teased a future for Kang the Conqueror in Avengers: Secret Wars' story. That said, the studio has already begun laying the groundwork for Avengers: Doomsday in a recent Phase Five project, teasing RDJ's emergence as Doctor Doom and a team of Dark Avengers to him.
Captain America: Brave New World's Credits Scene Set Up "The Others"
The Leader Predicted A Future Involving Multiversal Ramifications
The Phase Five project in question is Captain America: Brave New World, one of the many Marvel projects of 2025. The film sees Sam Wilson's Captain America go up against Samuel Sterns/The Leader, a villain returning from The Incredible Hulk who now possesses a mutated brain that allows him to make impossible predictions and calculations. Despite being defeated by Sam and his allies, The Leader remained alive in the MCU's supervillain prison, the Raft, leading to Captain America: Brave New World's post-credit scene in which Sterns teased an intriguing, exciting future.
Captain America: Brave New World's Post-Credits Scene Sets Up An Unexpected Marvel Movie
Captain America: Brave New World has a post-credits scene setting up an Marvel movie, so we break down what it means for the MCU.
In the post-credits scene, The Leader is shown goading Sam with his predictions of the future. Sterns mentions that he has predicted the outcome of the multiverse, insisting that the universe they inhabit is not the only one. Sterns then ponders what will happen when Sam and his allies have to protect this world from "the others." The post-credit scene then fades the black, with Sterns not revealing who exactly he means by the ominous phrase, though it seems logical that he is teasing the story of Avengers: Doomsday.
Marvel Theory: The Others Are Dark Avengers Led By RDJ's Doctor Doom
Evidence Leans Towards A Dark Team Of Former MCU Heroes
The main theory stemming from Captain America: Brave New World's post-credit scene is that the others in question are a team of Dark Avengers, led by Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom. The reveal of RDJ's casting to the MCU was one of the biggest in the franchise's recent history, which was only bolstered when it was reported that Chris Evans would also return in Avengers: Doomsday. With these two casting choices in mind, it seems as though Marvel Studios is assembling the Avengers once more, only this time as villainous, multiversal lackeys of Doctor Doom.
Chris Evans debunked his MCU return, but actors like Andrew Garfield, Tobey Maguire, and Dafne Keen have also done this in recent years before appearing in the likes of Spider-Man: No Way Home and Deadpool & Wolverine.
If this theory were proven to be true, the team would already have the Iron Man replacement in Doom thanks to the same actor portraying both. Evans could then return as Marvel Comics' HYDRA version of Captain America from another universe that has allied with Doom. If other previous MCU actors returned, they could be shown as the main villains the prime timeline Avengers would have to go up against before Doom creates Battleworld and sets up the story of Avengers: Secret Wars.
Who The MCU's Dark Avengers Could Be
Who Could Face Off Against The MCU's New Avengers?
Regarding the other evil team that would face off against the MCU's heroes if this theory came true, the third choice is fairly obvious. Aside from Captain America and Iron Man, the only other original Avenger without a role in the franchise anymore is Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow. Widow died in Avengers: Endgame collecting the Soul Stone, meaning it makes sense for Johansson to return as an evil variant of her. Natasha Romanoff has one of the darkest MCU histories, so it would make sense for a multiversal variant of her to have turned down a darker path.
This way, the three dead or retired MCU heroes from the Infinity Saga would be back as evil versions of themselves or an evil mastermind like Doom, prompting a difficult challenge for the Avengers formed by Sam Wilson's Captain America. Concerning any other Dark Avengers, the possibilities of the multiverse are quite literally endless. One possibility is Marvel Studios could simply utilize six evil variants that play on the original six Avengers of the MCU, or the movie could introduce variants of newer Avengers like Doctor Strange, Spider-Man, or Captain Marvel, to name only a few.
All 13 MCU Movies & Shows Starring The Original 6 Avengers, Ranked
The MCU's original six Avengers have been part of many crossovers, but the team's contribution to the franchise in solo entries is equally impressive.
If the other three original Avengers appeared as followers of Doom, Avengers: Doomsday could use the Hawkeye from the Dark Avengers comic run that was actually Bullseye. Hulk could be depicted as a raging monster who lost his humanity as Banner and became evil, while Thor could be shown to have been picked by Odin as his executioner, as Hela was in Thor: Ragnarok, becoming the Asgardian god of Death. If not these, the possibilities are still numerous, allowing Avengers: Doomsday's writers several intriguing and fun ways to bring the Dark Avengers to life if this theory comes to fruition.
Why RDJ's Doctor Doom And Dark Avengers Would Be The Perfect Avengers Villains
Avengers: Doomsday's Potential Setup Looks Very Promising
If Robert Downey Jr.'s Doctor Doom is ed by the Dark Avengers, it has to be said that this would be the perfect villain team for the New Avengers to face. The reason for this stems from the narrative satisfaction of the MCU coming completely full circle. Avengers: Endgame already provided this by revisiting past MCU films, but the story remained solely focused on stopping Thanos and bringing back the population of the universe that was lost in the Blip. By bringing the Dark Avengers in Avengers: Doomsday, this full circle feeling will be even more impactful.
This not only raises the emotional stakes but the multiversal ramifications of Avengers: Doomsday also raises the literal stakes...
Having the original six Avengers who began the MCU coming back as villains for the New Avengers to face is thematically powerful, and will give audiences a sense of conflict within themselves by seeing faces like Chris Evans and RDJ being evil masterminds. This not only raises the emotional stakes but the multiversal ramifications of Avengers: Doomsday also raises the literal stakes against the sole universe featured in the Infinity Saga. Overall, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has the perfect villains for stories who were hopefully being teased in Captain America: Brave New World.
Avengers: Doomsday
Cast
Thor
Vanessa KirbySue Storm / Invisible Woman
Johnny Storm / Human Torch
Ebon Moss-BachrachBen Grimm / The Thing
