What Is Doomsday? Avengers 5 Title & Story Clues Explained

Updated  Oct 14, 2026, 11:54 PM EDT

Since 2019, Kevin Erdmann has been one of Screen Rant's Senior Staff Writers, covering all kinds of Superhero and Star Wars media with Easter egg breakdowns, theory pieces, breaking news, and more. A huge Star Wars & MCU fan, Kevin also loves Batman (because he's Batman), but could talk for hours about why Nightwing is DC's greatest hero. 

With 8 years of total experience covering entertainment and pop culture, Kevin has gotten the chance to interview top creatives and talent, and has also attended major media events like Disney's D23 convention.

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Following a creative overhaul and multiple changes behind the scenes, the official title for the fifth Avengers movie is Avengers: Doomsday. Set to star Robert Downey Jr. as the MCU's Victor von Doom in a multiversal conflict of epic proportions, "Doomsday" certainly does feel like a pretty apt title for several reasons based on everything we know so far.

Following issues surrounding Jonathan Majors' role as Kang the Conqueror, what was once Avengers: The Kang Dynasty is now Avengers: Doomsday, the first of two Avengers movies set for release in the MCU's Phase 6 and the end of the current Multivese Saga. With Marvel's Kang replacement now confirmed, Avengers: Doomsday is drawing the attention of many, not only for its returning directors and cast members, but also for its foreboding title as well.

Avengers: Doomsday Likely Refers To The End Of The MCU Multiverse

As seen in trailers and various promos for Avengers: Doomsday as well as new footage added to Avengers: Endgame with its recent theatrical re-release, the MCU multiverse is set to imminently collapse, likely bringing with it the end of all realities and existence overall. Likewise, it's been teased in a trailer that there may only be three worlds left standing when Doomsday begins: the main MCU reality of Earth-616, the home of The Fantastic Four designated Earth-828, and a world that's home to the X-Men who may or may not be the same ones seen in the previous Fox universe of Earth-1005 (despite being played by the same actors).

With all of these assembled heroes no doubt seeking to protect their own worlds and/or save the multiverse in its entirety, it follows that "Doomsday" is indeed approaching, a day when everything ceases to exist. As such, it does seem likely that Avengers: Doomsday will be taking key inspiration from the comics' Time Runs Out storyline, a prelude event that directly set up the events of 2015's Secret Wars and saw heroes intentionally destroying other worlds before they could collide and destroy theirs in a massive incursion.

Case in point, one of Avengers: Endgame Encore's new post-credits scenes sees the TVA monitoring Earth-1005 and Earth-1127 opening fire on each other with missiles.

Doomsday Certainly Refers To RDJ's Doctor Doom

Image via Marvel Studios

Additionally, it's more than safe to assume that Avengers: Doomsday's title is also in reference to the film's primary antagonist. When the movie and its new title were first announced at SDCC 2024, it was confirmed that Robert Downey Jr. would return to the MCU as Doctor Doom. Downey Jr. will portray the iconic Marvel Comics villain in both Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars, with the Russo Brothers returning to direct after helming Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War, and Avengers: Endgame.

With Downey Jr.'s Doom serving as the Avengers' primary villain in Phase 6, Avengers: Doomsday undoubtedly refers to him. After all, "Doomsday" is a common word used to describe the end time and/or a period of great danger, while also containing the word Doom taken from Victor von Doom's name. Given that Avengers 5 will see multiple teams of heroes likely attempting to stop whatever Doom's plan will be, the title works on both fronts: the threat Doom poses to the MCU, while also playing on his supervillain name at the same time.

What Avengers 5's Doomsday Title Means For The Story

Marvel Studios

Despite Doomsday referring to RDJ's Doom on the surface, it could also have a deeper meaning for the film's story we won't fully realize until the movie releases in December.

Perhaps the story will take cues from Brian Michael Bendis' Infamous Iron Man story, in which Doctor Doom takes on the moniker of Iron Man after Civil War II. Avengers: Doomsday could combine a few different Marvel stories, like reversing Infamous Iron Man and seeing a variant of Tony Stark becoming Doctor Doom, rather than the other way around. Likewise, the Russos have already teased that Doctor Doom will have more sympathetic motivations despite his dark methods, not unlike Thanos.

As seen in the trailers, Doom is heard telling the heroes that they're living stolen lives they must now give back. As such, it's quite possible that Victor will be trying to save the multiverse no matter the cost, and it's actually the Avengers who've triggered this new Doomsday for the multiverse.

How Avengers: Doomsday Could Set Up Avengers: Secret Wars

The final major question concerning Avengers: Doomsday is how it could set up the story of Avengers: Secret Wars. If the latter movie follows the events of the 2015 Marvel Comics run of the same name, it will see God Emperor Doom reigning over Battleworld. On the page, Battleworld was a patchwork realm of multiple universe fragments in the Marvel multiverse that survived endless incursions thanks to Doctor Doom, who used the power of the Molecule Man and the Beyonders to combine these remnants, ruling it as Emperor.

Doom could begin causing incursions across the Marvel multiverse due to his actions...

Concerning how Avengers: Doomsday could set up this story, it feels simple enough. Avengers 5 could establish the aforementioned potential plot point of a Tony Stark variant becoming Doctor Doom or just having RDJ play Victor von Doom straight up, as the Russos have teased. Either way, Doom could begin triggering incursions across the Marvel multiverse due to his actions, intentionally or otherwise. The Avengers, Fantastic Four, and X-Men could then team up to try and stop him in Avengers 5, leading to them failing as Doom accidentally or purposefully destroys thousands of universes.

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Doom could then harness new cosmic power from his actions in Doomsday to try and balance and/or save what he can, then likely rule over what's left in Avengers: Secret Wars. The latter film would then focus on the heroes that survived the incursions from across the multiverse teaming up to stop Doctor Doom for the final film that brings the Multiverse Saga to a close. As evidenced, the title of Avengers: Doomsday gives a lot of potential for the film when it releases at the end of this year.

Avengers: Doomsday releases on December 18th, 2026 from Marvel Studios.

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  Victor von Doom

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  Reed Richards / Mr. Fantastic

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  Thor

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  Vanessa Kirby

  Sue Storm / Invisible Woman

Avengers: Doomsday is the fifth Avengers film and kicks off Phase 6 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. A stacked cast of heroes both new and old to the MCU — including members of the X-Men — will face off against Victor von Doom, revealed at San Diego Comic-Con in 2024 to be played by a returning Robert Downey Jr.