Avengers: Doomsday Trailer Held Back for D23, With X-Men Cast Reveals Reportedly on Deck

The Avengers: Doomsday trailer did not arrive at 9:00 a.m. Pacific time as some had expected. What Marvel Studios released instead was a new poster, and the Doomsday clock countdown on its site changed too. The background switched to Victor von Doom, who looked like he was about to grab his mask. Some people online said it looked like he was holding a type of crystal, but I think that is just stained glass in the background.

There was apparently a reason for the change. It seemed like Marvel Studios and Disney had a lot planned for D23 that day, and I was hearing from a lot of different sources that the panel might actually go bigger than San Diego Comic Con's Hall H. Insiders like Daniel RPK were saying to expect a lot from Disney at D23, and specifically that a Doomsday trailer and a Vision Quest trailer were coming. So if the trailer did not drop that morning, there was a chance it would show up at the panel that evening instead, which was set to start at 7:00 p.m. Pacific time.

I know that start time is late for people in the US and even worse for anyone outside it. But it sounded like Marvel Studios was going all out for the event. On the show floor, promotions for Vision Quest and other Marvel projects were already underway, and word came out that Jim Hammond, the original Human Torch, was set to appear in Vision Quest. That is a pretty wild reveal on its own, and D23 had not even started yet.

Insiders pointed to an X-Men cast reveal at the panel

A lot of insiders online were saying they had heard the X-Men cast would be announced that night, and for the most part it sounded like we already had a good idea of who that cast was. Sadie Sink as Jean Grey was one name that, going by spoilers out of Spider-Man: Brand New Day, I treated as confirmed. Kit Connor as Cyclops was reported by Deadline, and it looked like that casting was locked in as well.

The name I found most interesting was Christopher Abbott as Professor Xavier, which was said to be locked in, though I noted we would have to wait and see if that held up. It is hard to judge whether he has the aura of Professor X just from photos and older roles, since there was no image yet of him bald, in the wheelchair and in costume. Even so, it seemed like Marvel Studios had locked in a lot of these choices already.

Coming from James McAvoy, word was that an actor was locked in to play Mr. Sinister, with the reveal expected that night alongside a lot of other X-Men news. Adam Driver's name has floated around several different X-Men roles at different points, first Magneto, then Mr. Sinister, then something else, and I have heard that Marvel Studios was trying to throw us off by putting a bunch of different names out there so we would not know who he is actually going to be playing. Whether Driver is locked in as Mr. Sinister remains to be seen, but out of all the roles rumored for him, I think Mr. Sinister would suit him best. I said, "I think Mr. Sinister would probably be the best role for him," and that his face alone could pull off sinister pretty well.

James McAvoy also said one more X-Men character would be announced that night. My guess was Beast, given how much Charles Melton's name has come up for that role, even though he has denied it and some say Marvel Studios went a different direction anyway. Rogue was another name that has been talked about a lot. Putting it together as Sadie Sink, Kit Connor, Christopher Abbott, someone as Mr. Sinister and one more character, I said it made sense, since it would give the lineup Professor X and a villain in Mr. Sinister to build around Cyclops and Jean Grey as the foundation going forward. As I put it, "It looks like this is pretty much First Class with a villain, right?"

What I saw in what I believe was a leaked Doomsday trailer

I mentioned that I had seen what I believe is a leaked version of the Doomsday trailer, and that it lines up with roughly 75 to 80 percent of the trailer shown at San Diego Comic Con, just more condensed with a few different scenes. It includes some of Sue Storm's dialogue about Victor, about his full name Victor Werner von Doom, and about how he used to be kind and caring before he lost his family.

There are also new looks at Magneto and Professor Xavier in that footage, including Magneto in his purple suit, which I said looks comic accurate and looks really good. Marvel Studios changing the countdown clock, playing music leading up to the image swap, and clearly knowing fans were watching all pointed, to me, toward them holding the actual trailer for the bigger stage that night rather than a quiet morning drop.

Why D23 looked set to cover more than just Marvel

Daniel RPK's comments about expecting a lot from Disney at D23 were not just about Marvel. Pixar and possibly Star Wars were also part of the conversation. I also thought we might get a first look at Star Wars: Starfighter that day, and separately, news tied to the Ghost Rider movie, which is set to star Ryan Gosling with Shawn Levy directing for the MCU. Beyond that, I expected updates on Daredevil: Born Again, Spider-Man and X-Men '97.

Even with all that on the schedule, I was still expecting Marvel Studios to go last, since I said I would always guess the biggest name gets saved for last, and Marvel Studios is arguably the biggest thing Disney has right now on the movie and show side. That was not confirmed, just my own guess. Between the poster, the countdown change and the music cue, it felt like Marvel Studios was building toward something bigger than a routine morning release, and I was hoping that meant the Doomsday trailer, the Vision Quest trailer and possibly the X-Men cast reveal were all still coming that night.

Let me know your thoughts about what you think is going to happen at D23.