Avengers: Doomsday report: is everything after Endgame non-canon?

Marvel Studios might have made major changes to its plans for Avengers: Doomsday, including rewriting a decent amount of the script, if a report that circulated at the time ends up being true. According to that report, Marvel might simply treat everything that happened after Avengers: Endgame as not canon, which is a wild thing to think about. My own read is that it won't erase everything, and if it means what I think it means, I agree that Marvel should do it.

The report came from the same person who had claimed that Robert Downey Jr. was threatening to quit Avengers: Doomsday because the script wasn't good enough. My argument comes in two parts: Marvel choosing who appears in Doomsday, and a deeper reset that could rewrite the history of the MCU.

Doomsday will reportedly pick up after Endgame with the real Captain America

The report apparently came from Doomcock, who I've heard has been right about things in the past. As with all leaks, take it with a grain of salt. There's a chance it might not happen, and things change a lot as well.

According to the report, "the movie will pick up after Endgame," making the movies and shows released after Endgame non canon. It went on: "It will pick up on the real Captain America and his desire to live a life with Peggy, writing a completely new future." The report added, "We are still working to get more details about this, so more is coming soon."

The opening line of that report said the information came from multiple sources, including sources that weren't Doomcock's own. That means it had been heard from other people too, with other insiders hearing and stating the same thing. The report frames the story around Captain America, specifically the Steve Rogers seen at the end of Avengers: Endgame.

Chris Evans and Hayley Atwell reports line up with the Captain America claim

What stands out to me is that this lines up with everything else being heard at the time. That includes reports that Chris Evans and Hayley Atwell had shot scenes and were shooting scenes on the Avengers: Doomsday set.

Chris Evans had also been seen around that time, and he looked the way he does when he plays Captain America. He was in incredibly good shape, the same shape he's usually in for the role.

What non canon could mean: Secret Invasion versus Loki and WandaVision

The biggest part of the report is the claim that all movies and shows after Endgame would become non canon. That can be interpreted a few different ways. However you take it, I don't think it means everything we've seen since Endgame won't matter. I think some of it won't matter, and Marvel will be able to pick and choose what counts and what becomes irrelevant.

Secret Invasion is my main example. I'm pretty sure Marvel wants a clean slate on that one. It was one of the worst shows, and Secret Invasion the comics event is one of the biggest in Marvel history, yet the MCU version was nothing like it. I'm sure Marvel will want to say it's not canon, and I'm sure many fans would love that too.

Then there are stories like Loki and WandaVision. Those seem far too big to dismiss as unconnected to the real MCU story, when I think they clearly are connected. The same goes for movies like Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, The Fantastic Four and Thunderbolts. Those are clearly tied to the overall MCU canon, because Marvel president Kevin Feige had already confirmed that the Thunderbolts, the New Avengers and the Fantastic Four would be in Avengers: Doomsday, all going up against Doom.

Part one: Marvel choosing who appears in Avengers: Doomsday

The first part of what I think the report means is that Marvel will pick and choose who shows up in Avengers: Doomsday, and pick the story it wants to tell. Based on this report and others about Captain America returning, it seems like Marvel Studios is making the story about Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Evans, Doctor Doom and Captain America.

Kevin Feige confirmed those other teams are part of it, so they'll be in it as well. There will be many different teams in Avengers: Doomsday, much like in Avengers: Infinity War, but the overall story might focus on Steve and Doom. That gives Marvel the opportunity to leave certain characters and groups out of the events of the film. I think that's what the report means by all movies and shows after Endgame being non canon. It doesn't mean all of them; it means picking and choosing.

I don't think She-Hulk will be involved. Even though concept art of her alongside Bruce Banner's Hulk surfaced for Avengers: Secret Wars, I think she might be a character Marvel decides not to pursue more stories with. The same goes for Moon Knight, unfortunately. Marvel could also erase Wanda's story, because many people didn't like her as the bad guy, and there hadn't been much talk of her returning until after Secret Wars. So maybe that's the plan.

Part two: Battleworld and why Marvel might want to move past Phase 4 and Phase 5

The second part is where I think the real erasing happens. This goes beyond leaving characters out of the Doomsday story and into getting rid of them completely. That comes with the destruction of the multiverse and the creation of Battleworld, or a reset of the MCU. This is where I think Marvel will truly establish that whatever happened after Avengers: Endgame wasn't part of the main story it wanted to tell.

I guess you can't blame Marvel Studios for wanting this. The studio had more or less said that after Endgame, in Phase 4, it was pushed hard to make Disney Plus shows, spread too thin, and saw quality slip because the focus was on quantity. Marvel also said Kevin Feige, who usually supervised everything, couldn't be involved in every project in a meaningful way, because he was moving from project after project without much time for each.

Marvel has since changed its ways. Kevin Feige is now over the movies, and the studio isn't making as many movies and shows as before. On top of that, it ran into the writers' strike, the actors' strike, COVID and the situation with Jonathan Majors. It would make sense for Marvel to act as though that whole phase didn't really happen. My preference, though, is for Marvel to consolidate some of the good stories into Avengers: Doomsday, which I do think is going to happen.

How a Crisis on Infinite Earths style reset could rewrite MCU history

The reset and the move to a new universe has been described as something like Crisis on Infinite Earths, where many universes are combined into one. The people in those universes no longer remember the past, only the universe they're in, and history is essentially rewritten. That's what Marvel would do with the MCU, and I think that's the key to this report.

I've theorized that this rewriting of history might happen in Doomsday itself, rather than Marvel waiting for Secret Wars. That's the point where Marvel could say Secret Invasion never happened, and that this movie or that show never happened.

Some characters from the old universe would carry over to the new one and remember events from the past, like Iron Man, The Avengers, Avengers: Age of Ultron and some of what happened with Doom. The Fantastic Four are known to be crossing over as well, and most likely Spider-Man. That's how Marvel can erase everything while keeping what it wants through the characters who remember, which keeps those stories alive.

At the same time, it gives Marvel a completely clean slate: a new universe holding every character the studio could hope to use, including the X-Men, the Fantastic Four, the Avengers and Spider-Man. It's a time that I, and I'm sure many people, are looking forward to. It sounds like Marvel Studios is going to prune what it didn't like about Phase 4 and Phase 5.