What to Watch Before Avengers: Doomsday

Captain America: The First Avenger

The origin of Steve Rogers and the first Infinity Stone (Tesseract). Sets the moral compass the Avengers are built around.

Marvel One-Shot: Agent Carter

Fun post-WWII Peggy short. No story payoff beyond the main film.

Agent Carter (Season 1)

Peggy builds the SSR into what becomes S.H.I.E.L.D. Entertaining spy thriller — no thread leads to Doomsday.

Agent Carter (Season 2)

Zero Matter teases the Dark Dimension. Self-contained — no Doomsday thread.

Captain Marvel

Carol Danvers becomes the most powerful hero in the MCU. Her 1990s origin explains why she's been off-world — and why she answers when called.

Iron Man

Tony Stark reveals he's Iron Man — the moment the MCU began. His Avengers Initiative conversation with Fury seeds everything that follows.

Iron Man 2

Introduces War Machine (James Rhodes), Black Widow, and the wider S.H.I.E.L.D. world. Rhodes is confirmed for Doomsday.

The Incredible Hulk

Bruce Banner's MCU origin. Establishes the Abomination and the tension between Bruce and the Hulk that runs all the way through Endgame. Hulk confirmed for Doomsday.

Iron Man 2 (Post-Credit Scene)

Mjolnir is found in a New Mexico crater — the first hint that Thor's world is about to arrive on Earth.

Thor

Thor's origin and Loki's discovery that he's adopted. Their rivalry defines a decade of MCU storytelling — Loki's journey from villain here ends at his sacrifice in Loki S2. Thor confirmed for Doomsday.

Captain America: The First Avenger (Credits)

Nick Fury wakes Steve in the present — he's been frozen for 70 years. Steve's disorientation here is what Endgame resolves. Steve Rogers confirmed for Doomsday.

Thor (Post-Credit Scene)

Nick Fury shows Selvig the Tesseract while Loki secretly controls his mind. The Infinity Stone chase that drives Phases 1–3 begins here.

The Avengers

The original team assembles to stop Loki and the Tesseract. The template all future team-up films follow. Mid-credits: Thanos is revealed for the first time.

Iron Man 3

Tony's PTSD after the Battle of New York. He destroys all his suits to prove he doesn't need the armor — only to rebuild bigger in Age of Ultron.

Thor: The Dark World

The Reality Stone (Aether) is introduced and recovered. Loki fakes his death and secretly takes Odin's throne — directly setting up Ragnarok.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier

S.H.I.E.L.D. has been HYDRA since its founding. Bucky Barnes is alive as the Winter Soldier. Steve's world is shattered — this is where the Avengers fracture begins. Bucky and Sam both confirmed for Doomsday.

Guardians of the Galaxy

The Power Stone and the wider cosmic MCU. Peter, Gamora, Rocket, Groot, Drax — the team whose sacrifices in Infinity War are among the most devastating.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

Ego (a Celestial) is Peter's father and the villain. Yondu sacrifices himself to save Peter. Emotionally the strongest Guardians film — but the team has disbanded with no confirmed Doomsday payoff.

Avengers: Age of Ultron

Tony creates Ultron from the Mind Stone — an act of hubris that creates Vision and triggers the Sokovia Accords. The Avengers fracture begins here.

Ant-Man

Scott Lang becomes Ant-Man. Introduces the Quantum Realm, which becomes the key to time travel in Endgame. Scott confirmed for Doomsday.

Captain America: Civil War

The Avengers split over the Sokovia Accords. Tony learns Bucky killed his parents. Steve and Tony's friendship fractures permanently. Spider-Man and Black Panther debut. Bucky, Sam, and Steve all confirmed for Doomsday.

Black Widow

Natasha dismantles the Red Room and frees all the Widows. Yelena Belova is introduced — she's the POV character of Thunderbolts*, which directly feeds Doomsday.

Eyes of Wakanda (Season 1)

Animated anthology showing Wakandan warriors through history protecting vibranium. Context for Wakanda lore.

Black Panther

T'Challa becomes king and opens Wakanda to the world. Shuri and Namor both confirmed for Doomsday.

Spider-Man: Homecoming

Peter's first MCU solo film. Tony mentors him, then steps back. The foundation for who Peter is when No Way Home breaks him.

Doctor Strange

Stephen Strange becomes Sorcerer Supreme. Introduces the Time Stone and the magic system. Strange's spellwork underpins No Way Home, Multiverse of Madness, and feeds Doomsday.

Deadpool

Wade Wilson's origin as Deadpool. Deadpool & Wolverine (Doomsday-essential) is the direct payoff — you'll appreciate it far more having seen this.

Deadpool 2

Vanessa is killed at the start. Cable arrives from the future. Deadpool forms X-Force (most die immediately). Sets up the found-family theme that carries into Deadpool & Wolverine.

Thor: Ragnarok

Hela destroys Mjolnir and Asgard itself. Thor loses his eye. 'Asgard is not a place — it's a people.' The Asgardian refugees on their escape ship are who Thanos ambushes in the opening of Infinity War. Thor confirmed for Doomsday.

Ant-Man and the Wasp

Janet van Dyne is rescued from the Quantum Realm. Ghost (confirmed for Doomsday) is introduced and partially healed. The post-credits shows the snap happening in real time.

Avengers: Infinity War

Thanos collects all six Infinity Stones and snaps away half of all life. Doctor Strange gives the Time Stone intentionally — 'We're in the endgame now.' This is the pivot everything before leads to and everything after responds to.

Ant-Man & The Wasp (All Credits)

Hope, Hank and Janet are snapped mid-sentence. Scott is alone in the Quantum Realm — the exact moment that makes him the key to Endgame's time heist.

Captain Marvel (Post-Credits Scene)

Carol responds to Fury's pager in the Avengers facility. The direct bridge into Endgame's opening.

Avengers: Endgame

Five years after the snap, the surviving Avengers execute a time heist to undo it. Tony snaps Thanos away and dies. Steve stays in the past with Peggy — passing the shield to Sam. The MCU's defining film.

Avengers: Endgame Encore

A theatrical re-release of Avengers: Endgame, timed just ahead of Doomsday. Every screening includes an exclusive look at Avengers: Doomsday, and IMAX and Disney's new Infinity Vision format add an extra sneak peek on top of it. The Russo brothers have called the new material a bridge into Doomsday, though Marvel has not said exactly what it shows. The story itself is unchanged: if you've already seen Endgame, you already know it.

WandaVision (Season 1)

Wanda's grief unconsciously traps an entire town in a sitcom reality. She becomes the Scarlet Witch and takes the Darkhold. White Vision is restored. The foundation of everything Multiverse of Madness builds on.

WandaVision (Ep 9 Mid-Credit Scene)

The Scarlet Witch, studying the Darkhold in astral form, hears her children's voices — she'll chase that hope to devastating ends in Multiverse of Madness.

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (Season 1)

Sam Wilson becomes Captain America. The shield passes from Steve to Sam — the arc Brave New World continues. Sam confirmed for Doomsday.

Loki (Season 1)

The TVA exists to maintain a single Sacred Timeline. He Who Remains (a Kang variant) is behind it all. Sylvie kills him — releasing every Kang variant into the multiverse. This act makes Doomsday possible.

Peter's To-Do List

Peter Parker's mundane post-Endgame to-do list. Four minutes, and it sits directly between Endgame and Far From Home.

Spider-Man: Far From Home

Peter's first adventure after Tony's death. Mysterio frames him — then reveals his identity to the world. The crisis that drives him to Doctor Strange in No Way Home.

Black Widow (Post-Credit Scene)

Valentina sends Yelena to kill Clint Barton (Hawkeye) — blaming him for Natasha's death. The chain that leads to Hawkeye, then to Thunderbolts*, then to Doomsday.

Hawkeye (Season 1)

Kate Bishop becomes Hawkeye. Kingpin (Wilson Fisk) returns as the crime boss behind it all — directly setting up his Born Again arc as Mayor of New York.

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

Shang-Chi earns the Ten Rings and defeats the Dweller-in-Darkness. A mysterious unexplained beacon is sent out — Shang-Chi confirmed for Doomsday, and the beacon is still unanswered.

Spider-Man: No Way Home

Peter asks Strange to make the world forget he's Spider-Man — the spell goes wrong and pulls in multiverse villains and both Tobey and Andrew's Spider-Men. Aunt May dies. All three Peters cure the villains. Strange wipes everyone's memory of Peter — he starts completely alone.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

Wanda (Scarlet Witch) is the villain — she dreamwalks universes to find her children, destroying the Illuminati including Professor X. Incursions (universe-collisions) are introduced as the multiverse's great danger. Strange confirmed for Doomsday.

Thor: Love and Thunder

Jane Foster wields Mjolnir as the Mighty Thor — and dies of cancer after the final battle. Thor adopts Gorr's daughter Love. Love appears in Doomsday trailers. Thor confirmed for Doomsday.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

T'Challa has died. Shuri becomes the new Black Panther. Namor and Talokan are introduced. Shuri and Namor both confirmed for Doomsday.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania

Scott and Cassie fight Kang the Conqueror in the Quantum Realm. Kang is defeated — and a mid-credits scene shows a council of his variants planning a multiversal uprising. The Kang threat is fully unleashed.

Loki (Season 2)

Loki sacrifices himself — becoming the new Yggdrasil (World Tree), holding all branching timelines together with his own power. His sacrifice is the reason the multiverse is stable enough for Doomsday to happen at all.

Deadpool & Wolverine

A rogue TVA official is erasing the Fox universe. Wade and Logan must save it. They defeat Cassandra Nova and save the Fox timeline — which is why the entire original X-Men cast can appear in Doomsday. This film is the bridge.

Captain America: Brave New World

Sam Wilson as Captain America defeats Red Hulk (Thaddeus Ross). The Leader is the hidden manipulator. Sam's arc from FATWS completes here — he's confirmed as a major Doomsday character.

Thunderbolts*

Yelena Belova leads a team of anti-heroes against the Void (Bob Reynolds / Sentry's shadow). They emerge as the New Avengers. This is the team going into Doomsday.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps

Doctor Doom makes his MCU debut — set in an alternate 1960s. Galactus and the Silver Surfer appear. Post-credits: Doom crosses into the main MCU timeline. The direct setup for Doomsday.