Film Phase 6 — Doomsday (2026)

AVENGERS: DOOMSDAY

Name: AVENGERS: DOOMSDAY
Released: 2026-12-18
Duration: 150 min
Cast: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Pedro Pascal, Paul Rudd

Releases December 18, 2026 2h 30m ★ Essential

Beloved heroes from three distinct universes are set on a deadly collision course and face an existential threat unlike anything they've ever encountered.

Watch note

Everything leads here.

Why It Matters in the MCU

The culmination of the Multiverse Saga assembles legacy Avengers and the newly integrated Fantastic Four against Doctor Doom — a villain the franchise has been building toward since Loki established the multiverse as its central mythology. Where Infinity War put the audience in Thanos's perspective, Doomsday positions Doom as a strategic rather than cosmic threat: a man whose intelligence and patience make him more dangerous than any single point of power. The Russo brothers' return to the franchise promises the structural sophistication that made Civil War and Infinity War the most dramatically successful large-ensemble entries.

Watch These First

35 titles lead into AVENGERS: DOOMSDAY — 86 hours in total, 21 of them essential. It releases in 133 days, so that is about 0.6 hours a day from now.

Captain America: The First Avenger Essential 2h 4m ★ 7.0
X-Men: First Class 2h 12m ★ 7.3
X-Men 1h 44m ★ 7.0
X2: X-Men United 2h 14m ★ 7.0
X-Men: The Last Stand 1h 44m ★ 6.4
Thor Essential 1h 55m ★ 6.8
The Avengers Essential 2h 23m ★ 8.1
Iron Man 3 2h 10m ★ 6.9
Thor: The Dark World 1h 52m ★ 6.5
Captain America: The Winter Soldier Essential 2h 16m ★ 7.7
Guardians of the Galaxy Essential 2h 1m ★ 7.9
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 2h 16m ★ 7.6
Avengers: Age of Ultron Essential 2h 21m ★ 7.3
Ant-Man 1h 57m ★ 7.1
Captain America: Civil War Essential 2h 27m ★ 7.4
Black Widow 2h 14m ★ 7.2
Black Panther Essential 2h 14m ★ 7.4
Spider-Man: Homecoming 2h 13m ★ 7.3
Doctor Strange Essential 1h 55m ★ 7.4
X-Men: Days of Future Past Essential 2h 11m ★ 7.5
Deadpool 1h 48m ★ 7.6
Deadpool 2 1h 59m ★ 7.5
Thor: Ragnarok Essential 2h 10m ★ 7.6
Ant-Man and the Wasp Essential 1h 58m ★ 6.9
Avengers: Infinity War Essential 2h 29m ★ 8.2
Logan Essential 2h 17m ★ 7.8
Avengers: Endgame Essential 3h 2m ★ 8.2
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (Season 1) 5h ★ 7.6
Loki (Season 1) Essential 5h ★ 8.2
Hawkeye (Season 1) 5h ★ 7.8
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania Essential 2h 4m ★ 6.2
Loki (Season 2) Essential 5h ★ 8.2
Deadpool & Wolverine Essential 2h 8m ★ 7.6
Captain America: Brave New World Essential 1h 58m ★ 6.0
Thunderbolts* Essential 2h 7m ★ 7.3

Want the full picture? Read the complete guide to what to watch before AVENGERS: DOOMSDAY , with everything graded by how much it matters.

Create a watch plan for these 35

Opens the planner with just these titles, so you can set your own pace.

Where It Fits in the MCU

AVENGERS: DOOMSDAY sits at position 165 of 165 in the MCU's story-chronological order, placing it within the Phase 6 — Doomsday (2026) era. It is rated Essential — must-watch for following the main MCU narrative. Watching in story-chronological order provides the most coherent character development experience — individual arcs build naturally toward the franchise's major crossover events, with each film's post-credits scenes carrying forward into what follows.