Marvel veterans Chris Hemsworth, Anthony Mackie, Sebastian Stan, Paul Rudd and Tom Hiddleston will be suiting up once again for the next "Avengers" film, Marvel Studios has revealed.
The Hollywood banner on Wednesday evening announced that the new installment, titled "Avengers: Doomsday", has started production.
The five actors are reprising their fan-favourite characters of Thor, Captain America, Bucky Barnes, Ant-Man and Loki in the film.
Robert Downey Jr, who kickstarted the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) with his 2008 "Iron Man" movie and played the titular superhero till the 2019 blockbuster "Avengers: Endgame", has moved to the other side.
The Hollywood superstar will be appearing as supervillain Doctor Doom in the movie, which is being directed by Anthony and Joe Russo.
The superhero roster also includes Simu Liu, who played the title character in 2021's “Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings”, Letitia Wright, who took on the mantle of Black Panther from late Chadwick Boseman and Winston Duke as M'Baku.
Tenoch Huerta Mejia, who played the aquatic antagonist Namor in “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”, and Danny Ramirez, who debuted as Falcon in the studio's most recent film "Captain America: Brave New World", are part of the lineup as well.
But the biggest surprise was the return of many stars of the "X-Men" franchise. Cinema veterans Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen will be appearing as Professor Charles Xavier and Magneto, along with actors James Marsden as Cyclops, Rebecca Romijn as Mystique, Alan Cuming as Nightcrawler and Kelsey Grammer as Beast.
Channing Tatum, previously attached to a Gambit movie that never materialised, will appear in "Doomsday", following his debut in the 2024 blockbuster "Deadpool & Wolverine".
Members of the upcoming "Fantastic Four" movie are also in the cast. Pedro Pascal will be suiting up as Mr. Fantastic, alongside, Vanessa Kirby's The Invisible Woman, Ebon Moss-Bachrach's The Thing and Joseph Quinn's The Human Torch.
The stars of another forthcoming Marvel title “Thunderbolts*” are in the mix as well. Florence Pugh will feature as Yelena Belova, along with David Harbour as Red Guardian, Wyatt Russell as U.S. Agent, Hannah John-Kamen as Ghost, Lewis Pullman as the mysterious Bob.
"Avengers: Doomsday" is set to be released on May 1, 2026.
