Russo Brothers Announce 'A New Beginning' for MCU with Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars

The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is gearing up for an exciting new chapter, with directors Anthony and Joe Russo at the helm of Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars. In a revealing interview with Brazilian outlet Omelete, the Russo brothers described these films as a "new beginning," setting the stage for Phase 7 of the MCU. Joe Russo expressed enthusiasm about the shift from concluding the Infinity Saga with Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame to initiating a fresh narrative arc. "The greatest thing that ever happened is we got to get immersed in a 20 movie arc and see an ending to that arc," he said. "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 shared insights into their return to the Marvel universe. Anthony Russo admitted that after finishing Endgame, their path forward in the MCU was uncertain. "We didn’t know what our road forward was in the MCU after we finished Endgame," he said. "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 to revive the cinematic experience post-pandemic. Interestingly, the idea to bring back Robert Downey Jr. for Doomsday originated from Marvel producer Kevin Feige. "That conversation was had a while ago, and Robert tried to talk us into doing it and we said no," Joe recalled. "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 also emphasized their approach to crafting compelling villains, noting, "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."

Fans eagerly anticipating the Russo brothers' latest projects will have to wait until Avengers: Doomsday hits theaters on May 1, 2026, followed by Avengers: Secret Wars in May 2027. The anticipation is building not only for these films but also for the introduction of X-Men characters into the MCU, as teased by Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige during the Disney APAC Content Showcase in Singapore last year. Feige hinted at seeing "some X-Men players that you might recognize" in upcoming MCU movies, with a significant focus on mutants and the X-Men post-Secret Wars. "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 stated.

Feige underscored the importance of the X-Men in the MCU's future, 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."

With Phase 7 poised to be dominated by the X-Men, the MCU is already showcasing early signs of their integration, as seen with Storm's appearance in What If...? Season 3. Moreover, Marvel Studios has added three untitled movie projects to its 2028 release schedule: February 18, 2028; May 5, 2028; and November 10, 2028, increasing speculation that one of these could be an X-Men film.