Avengers: Doomsday scripts restarted: why that's good for the MCU

There seemed to be a production delay on Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars, and the reported reason was that the Russo brothers were rewriting the scripts for both films from scratch. It isn't entirely what you think, and I was quite happy with it. To me, the Russo brothers coming back with Stephen McFeely at this time was the best thing we could ask for.

There was also an update on other Phase 6 projects, including Doctor Strange 3 and Shang-Chi 2, along with a quick note on Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse.

Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse and the Prowler voice actor update

We hadn't heard much about Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse, and the main thing fans were waiting for was an official release date. At the time, there seemed to be no date in sight. The voice actor behind the variant of Miles Morales who appears as the Prowler at the end of Across the Spider-Verse said he had not recorded any lines yet for Beyond the Spider-Verse.

We know his character is going to play a fairly sizable role in the movie, so things didn't seem to be moving along quickly. Many people thought at that point that the film wouldn't even come out in 2025, even though it was originally supposed to release in 2024.

Russo brothers reportedly rewriting Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars from scratch

There was a slight delay in production for Avengers: Doomsday, and we then reportedly got a reason for it. According to the insider Daniel Richtman, the Russo brothers were completely rewriting the script for Doomsday and Secret Wars, starting from scratch. Richtman also claimed they were still writing the script at the time and had until March to finish it.

Speaking to Collider at New York Comic Con the year before, the Russo brothers said filming was set to begin in spring 2025, in the second quarter of the year. As things stood then, it was the start of production that had slipped rather than the movie itself. I thought the delay was for a great cause.

Why Michael Waldron's Kang Dynasty plans no longer fit after Robert Downey Jr.'s Doctor Doom

Michael Waldron had been working on the scripts for Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars. Waldron wrote Loki season 1, though not season 2, and he also helped write Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. I personally think he would have done a great job.

The problem is that everything written before Robert Downey Jr.'s return as Doctor Doom was announced was built around Kang as the main villain. That story was going to be about a prime Kang and the Council of Kangs. With Doctor Doom entering the MCU, the story is now completely different.

According to reports, when Downey came back he specifically said he would return if the Russo brothers came back too. So even when Kevin Feige was thinking he would like Doctor Doom to replace Kang, with Downey in the role, Feige's plans for Doom, whatever they were, were still very different from what the Russo brothers were coming up with alongside Stephen McFeely.

At the time, I was sure they would keep some aspects of the original Kang Dynasty script. But with a new villain and no Council of Kangs, a lot of it would be quite different. I wouldn't be surprised if Doctor Doom gets his hands on some of Kang's technology.

The Russo brothers only returned once they had a Secret Wars story to tell

Here is the good news that should comfort many people. The Russo brothers only agreed to come back after they had decided what they wanted to do with Secret Wars. In fact, they claim it was a story they needed to tell. In an interview with Empire, they said they had always been in touch with Kevin Feige and Marvel Studios, but no inspiration had struck and nothing had brought them back.

Anthony Russo said: "we ended up stumbling upon an idea that activated all of us. You couldn't see it coming until it came, and once it came it was like, well, that's a story we need to tell." Joe Russo said there were ideas they had tried to wrap their heads around before this one, but they never found the story.

It came together when Stephen McFeely hit on how the Secret Wars comic arc might work in MCU form. Joe Russo recalled calling McFeely with the idea of all of them going back to do Secret Wars. McFeely flatly turned him down and hung up, then called back the next morning at 7:30 and said: "all right I have an idea." According to the Russos and McFeely, that was the idea that got them all to return.

All of this happened before it was announced that they were returning to direct, with McFeely writing, which means they had this idea before July 2024. So they had already had time to lock down the big ideas for Doomsday and for Secret Wars, since Doomsday leads directly into it.

Marvel Studios was reportedly moving on from Kang anyway

To me, the Russo brothers coming back with Stephen McFeely is the best thing we could ask for, because it seems Marvel Studios was going to get rid of Kang either way. After it was announced that Marvel Studios had parted ways with Jonathan Majors, major trades reported that Doctor Doom was brought up at the studio's yearly retreat well before Kevin Feige had even spoken to Robert Downey Jr. about playing him.

So this was going to happen anyway. With the Russo brothers directing and McFeely writing both Avengers movies, I believe we'll essentially get another Infinity War and Endgame. Continuity is very important for these films, especially given that Kang was set up across the MCU and is no longer the big bad, leaving little time for buildup. If anybody can handle it, I believe it's the Russo brothers with Stephen McFeely.

Doctor Strange 3 and Shang-Chi 2: before or after Avengers: Secret Wars?

We had been hearing about Doctor Strange 3 and Shang-Chi 2 for a while, and the question was when they would arrive. Secret Wars was reportedly going to start filming in spring 2026, and my view at the time was that there wasn't enough time to film both movies before that. Even filming one of them in the first three months of the year would be very hard, so it was entirely possible both would come after Secret Wars.

If I had to speculate, I said Shang-Chi 2 would come after Secret Wars for sure, while Doctor Strange 3 could come before it, which was my guess. I expect Avengers: Doomsday to pick back up with Doctor Strange's story, including what happened with him and Clea at the end of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

My guess was that something like the destruction of the multiverse would happen at the end of Doomsday, with a few movies released in between. If Doctor Strange 3 comes out before Secret Wars, I assumed it would be a huge Avengers level movie, probably about him exploring ways to restore the multiverse. I assumed the Scarlet Witch would be involved, and possibly Reed Richards. Given where it would sit, right before Secret Wars, it has to be big in nature.

Why starting over could keep Phase 6 cohesive

The good news about the Russo brothers starting from scratch is that the writers for the films and shows coming in between, Doctor Strange 3 included, can team up with them and Stephen McFeely. That would make sure everything is cohesive and the continuity flows well.

Whether Marvel Studios should have moved away from Kang is an entirely different discussion. But given the circumstances it created, it does seem we're in a good position to get the best out of the situation.

Marvel Studios going back to what works with the original Avengers

I've said this before, and it does seem to be the case: Marvel Studios has simply gone back to what works. It's bringing back the original Avengers actors, Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson, and the others still in the MCU are going to show up too, like Hawkeye, Bruce Banner and Thor, along with some of the newer Avengers.

Marvel also brought back the directors and the writer of two of the biggest movies in the MCU and two of the biggest movies of all time. If it's not broken, don't fix it. We know this works, so we're in very good hands.