D23 Roundup: Robert Downey Jr.'s Masked Dr. Doom, Full X-Men Cast Revealed, and a New Tangled Look

D23 dropped a huge wave of news this year, and even though we were not able to attend in person, Disney and the convention itself were reportedly a lot more relaxed about letting attendees film than usual, which is part of why so much footage ended up online. We wanted to walk through the three big trailers, the newly revealed X-Men cast, the Tangled live action first look, the animation slate, and a long list of theme park updates, because there is a lot here for fans to be excited about and a lot still left to speculate on.

We heard that a lot of the self-taped, bootlegged footage from inside the panels is apparently getting taken down now, which makes sense since attendees were not supposed to be sharing it publicly in the first place. Our take is simple: if you were not meant to record it, do not ruin the experience for people who could not be there.

Avengers Doomsday and Secret Wars footage has Robert Downey Jr.'s Dr. Doom fully masked

The Avengers Doomsday and Secret Wars footage was, for us, the standout of the day. We got to hear more of Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom, and it really does not sound like Robert Downey Jr. at all, which we loved as a choice. When it was first announced that the same actor who played Iron Man would also play this iconic villain, a lot of people questioned it, but hearing him disguised so completely makes the idea of an eventual face reveal feel like it could be a genuinely big moment for the Avengers who have crossed paths with Tony Stark before, whether that is Thor, Bruce Banner, Loki, Spider-Man, or Doctor Strange. We heard speculation that any reveal would happen in Secret Wars rather than Doomsday, which would track since it is such a big swing to hold in reserve, though we also pointed out that if Doom ends up burned or masked by makeup by that point, actually recognizing the actor underneath could still be tricky.

We are also holding out hope for a Deadpool and Wolverine cameo. Ryan Reynolds showed up in costume at a past Comic Con offering to help with reshoots even though the movie had already wrapped, and at D23 Hugh Jackman did an awkward bit where you could hear Reynolds whispering lines to him off to the side, repeating a lot of what Reynolds himself had said at the convention. Given how enormous Deadpool and Wolverine was and that Disney now owns those characters outright, it would make sense to slot them into the biggest Avengers movie yet, even in a small capacity.

One detail that stuck out in the footage was a moment where sentinels rise up around a character, which we thought looked amazing and only scratches the surface of what is coming. We are hoping to see it in the largest screen format we can find, comparing the anticipation to the very first Avengers movie. The Russo brothers directing both Doomsday and Secret Wars makes sense to us since they already pulled off Infinity War and Endgame, so we are curious how they will handle the sheer number of characters this time, since early art showed a wall of chairs representing heroes and villains with more still unannounced. We did manage to get tickets already, though ours are for a very late overnight showing since so many earlier slots sold out fast.

Where does Vision fit between his own show and Doomsday

We are wondering whether Vision will actually appear in Doomsday at all, since he has his own series, Vision Quest, arriving this October before Doomsday releases, which could mean Marvel is holding him back to let that story play out first. Paul Bettany was reportedly not among the actors shown in the Doomsday chair reveal, though Disney has said there are more characters involved than what was shown, so nothing is confirmed either way.

The Vision Quest trailer itself gave us a look that reminded us a little of WandaVision, going inside Vision's mind and home, complete with human avatars for characters including Ultron, voiced again by James Spader, who gets a few dad jokes about being Vision's father figure. We are eager to see how the show treats White Vision, since in the comics he retains all of Vision's memories and hardware but not the emotions, since those came from the Mind Stone that is now gone. It is an open question for us whether the show keeps that same emotional void or moves away from it.

Ahsoka season two trailer brings back Hayden Christensen and teases Thrawn's return

The Ahsoka season two footage, which was released online since we were not there in person, shows Ahsoka still pursuing Thrawn, with Anakin returning as a Force Ghost and more Hayden Christensen than before, including flashbacks to a younger Anakin and Ahsoka. We especially liked the moment where red lightning flashes during a fight in the World Between Worlds and gives a glimpse of Vader. Given how much they are pushing Christensen in the marketing, we think his role is likely to be bigger this season, and we are hoping that could mean more Vader as well.

With Thrawn now back in the galaxy proper, we are hoping this could be the door for Luke Skywalker to appear, similar to how Boba Fett effectively got a season of Mandalorian built around him. It is purely a hope on our part rather than anything confirmed. We are also excited to see more of the old Rebels crew together in live action, including Sabine, Ezra, Hera, Chopper, and Zeb, and we especially cannot wait to see more of Chopper, who we jokingly called a small war criminal given how casually violent he can be even toward surrendering enemies, comparing his grumpier, less crude energy to Claptrap from Borderlands.

Ray Stevenson's Baylan Skoll will be recast with Rory McCann taking over the role

We were sad going into this that Ray Stevenson, who played Baylan Skoll, passed away, and we are curious how much of his storyline on the planet with statues of the father, the son, and the daughter will actually be explored, including whether Sam Witwer could show up dressed as the son, referencing his role in Clone Wars. Disney did confirm a replacement: Rory McCann is taking over the role. We heard, through comments on one of our past reaction videos, that Stevenson and McCann were reportedly friends in real life. We loved the nobility Stevenson brought to a character who saw himself as working for the greater good, and we are hopeful McCann can capture a similar vibe while still making the role his own rather than doing a copy and paste performance.

X-Men's full cast is revealed, including Sadie Sink, Samara Weaving, and Adam Driver as Mr. Sinister

The full X-Men cast came out of D23, and we already knew Sadie Sink is playing Jean Grey since it was spoiled by the most recent Spider-Man movie. We are excited that Indie, from the film Obsession, has been cast as Rogue, though we admitted to not having seen that performance ourselves, only clips. We are genuinely curious whether they lean into the strong Southern belle version of Rogue that shows up in the comics and in X-Men 97, or take their own direction the way the original X-Men films did, since that version of Rogue barely resembled the comics at all. We would personally love a Southern accent for both Rogue and eventually Gambit if he shows up.

We talked through how young this cast skews compared to earlier X-Men films, noting that casting younger actors could let Disney lock them into a long-term, multi-movie contract the way they grow into the roles, though we also flagged the risk of that going wrong the way Sony's attempt at a Spider-Man villain universe did. Samara Weaving was cast as Emma Frost, which we think is a great fit, and Adam Driver's casting as Mr. Sinister genuinely surprised us. We initially assumed online images of him were fan casting before the official announcement came through, but we think Driver's seriousness as an actor suits a character built around obsession with mutant DNA, particularly his fixation on Jean and Scott's genetics in the comics.

A viewer comment noted relief that Driver is not playing Magneto, which sparked our own admission that we genuinely do not know who is playing Magneto yet, since footage of the character in Doomsday has been shown without confirming casting. We floated the idea that the reveal could come as a post credit scene, maybe even just Magneto's helmet appearing. Separately, we talked through Rogue's powers, noting that in the comics she does not just absorb touch, she once held onto Captain Marvel so long that she permanently put her into a coma and kept some of her powers, including flight and super strength, and we are curious whether the new film goes that route or keeps her ability more grounded.

Starfighter still has no footage, but it reportedly leans into an Andor style

We do not have much to say about Starfighter since no footage was shown to press or fans, only self-taped bootleg clips that are reportedly being taken down. From what we have heard, though, the project is leaning more toward an Andor style tone, and it is a movie rather than a series. We loved Andor, even the parts of season one that got pushback from fans who felt it did not feel like traditional Star Wars, and we are personally excited by the idea of Ryan Gosling in something with that tone, since we have liked his performances even in movies we did not love overall.

Tangled live action reveals Kathryn Hahn as Mother Gothel alongside Tegan Croft and Milo Manheim

We remain fifty-fifty on Disney's live action remakes in general, loving the idea when it is a film we are attached to like Tangled, Moana, or Lilo and Stitch, but pointing to Pinocchio as an example of one that did not work, joking that it was bad enough to explain why it went straight to Disney Plus. Kathryn Hahn was revealed as Mother Gothel, and we think there is no one better suited for the role, especially since Hahn can also sing. We noted that the original animated Mother Gothel was voiced by Donna Murphy, who is also an actress capable of singing, and wondered aloud why Disney did not go back to her, though we were quick to say Hahn is still the obvious and beloved choice.

We were less sold on the first images of Rapunzel and Flynn Rider, played by Tegan Croft and Milo Manheim. We liked the look of Rapunzel more than Flynn, though we stressed that has nothing to do with the actor and everything to do with first impressions from a still image rather than actual performance. A viewer comment compared Croft's look to Rachel McAdams, which we agreed with at first glance before realizing it was not her. As for the format overall, we said we cannot think of a single Disney live action remake we would call better than its animated original, though Cinderella and Jungle Book are the ones we rate highest.

The wishlist: live action Hercules and Hunchback of Notre Dame, plus an original Lilo and Stitch 2

News that a live action Hercules is in production got us talking through how we would want it handled, floating the idea of a Chicago-style structure where competing narrators, including the muses, argue over how the story is really being told. We do not know of any casting yet, but we stressed that getting Megara right matters just as much as getting Hercules right, since fans will not forgive a bad take on her. We would also love to see Hunchback of Notre Dame get the live action treatment, since the animated version already carries darker themes around Quasimodo's isolation and deafness and the villain Frollo, and we think leaning into that darkness with stronger songs could make for one of the better entries in the format, even suggesting a PG-13 approach.

On Lilo and Stitch, we are looking forward to a sequel that Disney has said will be mostly original material rather than adapting the existing straight to DVD Lilo and Stitch 2, since the live action changes make a direct adaptation difficult. We noted that Angel, one of the other experiments, will reportedly be in it, which tracks given how popular the character has become in merchandising, and we are curious whether other experiments beyond Angel might show up too.

Frozen 3 will finally give Anna and Kristoff their wedding and introduce a mysterious new villain

Frozen 3 is confirmed, with Jennifer Lee both writing and directing, and it will pick up with Anna and Kristoff's wedding, something we joked felt overdue given how long the characters have effectively already been together. Olaf is reportedly getting a romantic interest named Samantha, finally paying off the running joke from the earlier films about the name. There is also a new villain tied to the Northern Lights, shown only from behind or in shadow, following what we described as Disney's usual pattern of concealing a new character's face to build mystery, the same way they did with a mysterious character in Moana 2. From the images we saw, the villain looks like a dark version of Elsa, possibly covered in crystal or ice.

We are genuinely excited for it, joking that we assume this will not actually be the last Frozen movie no matter what marketing implies, the same way Toy Story 3 and 4 were each sold as the finale. We also compared the original songs, noting that Show Yourself and Into the Unknown grew tiresome for us after hearing children sing them constantly, in a way that a song like Golden from KPop Demon Hunters somehow has not, which we chalked up to Golden being a more upbeat, poppy song compared to the more Broadway-style ballads in Frozen.

Ghost Market, Clay, and a Kingdom Hearts anime series lead a packed animation slate

Ghost Market is a new Pixar film releasing in spring of 2028, described by Variety as inspired by Asian myths of stores where the living and the dead interact. It follows Kyle, a fast talking teenage content creator from Chicago who ends up on a family vacation in Hawaii and stumbles into Ono Market, a plate lunch shop hidden on Oahu's north shore that serves lost spirits stuck between life and death. According to the official synopsis, Kyle eats a mixed plate meant for the dead and accidentally turns himself half ghost, and to reverse it he has to deal with paranormal deliveries, long hours in a haunted kitchen, and his own family. We hope Pixar gives kids some pretty creepy moments by Pixar's standards, but not to the point of the Black Cauldron, which we joked scared the living daylights out of kids, and we think Pixar is the studio positioned to introduce kids to slightly scarier material without going that far.

Clay was also announced, starring Kieran Culkin as a man chosen to mentor a moldable ball of clay that he has to keep alive on a journey through a fantastical forest. There is not much more detail available yet, but we like the concept of an original IP built around a character made of clay, since it opens up the kind of visual freedom Disney used for the genie in Aladdin. Elsewhere, a Kingdom Hearts anime series is coming to Disney Plus and Hulu, which we think is overdue given how much story the games have accumulated, since compressing that into a single movie would lose too much. We also noted that we personally struggled with the games' battle camera angles enough to stop playing, so watching the story unfold as a series sounds appealing. Other titles mentioned included Hexed, Incredibles 3, Coco 2, which showed off design art of an aged up Miguel, and an Oswald animated series for Disney Plus, distinct from a separate live action Oswald project that appears to have been filming on location at Disneyland.

Zootopia 3 is expected to finally explain why the city has no birds

Given how much money Zootopia 2 made, a third film is already announced, and based on an end credits scene, it looks set to explore the fact that Zootopia has never actually shown any birds, something neither of us had noticed until it was pointed out. We joked about wanting to see a peacock rival Gazelle in popularity, and speculated the birds might simply live in their own separate area or city given the built world already has reptiles missing too. We also connected this to how heavily these franchises get built into the parks, noting Frozen lands in Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Paris and a prominent Zootopia presence in Shanghai, which makes continued sequels for both franchises a safe bet as long as there is still story to tell.

Parks updates: Carousel of Progress reboot, a mysterious Tomorrowland overhaul, and Avatar's uncertain future

Carousel of Progress is getting new voices from Jamie Lee Curtis and Bryan Cranston as Mom and Dad, updating the attraction's vision of the future since a lot of its current futuristic material now reads as dated or already surpassed. We are glad updates are happening since we feel it is overdue, but we were frustrated that Disney announced a broader Tomorrowland renovation at Disneyland with almost no details, essentially teasing it and moving on. There is reportedly some talk that the Tomorrowland upgrade could come before the long planned Avatar land, which made us wonder aloud whether Avatar land might not happen at all. Personally, we would be fine seeing a Zootopia land take that spot in California Adventure instead, since we do not feel strongly attached to the Avatar franchise, though we acknowledged Avatar as a franchise is still making a lot of money, with sequels still coming. We also noted that theme park contracts reportedly grant certain lands exclusivity to specific parks for a set number of years, which may explain why a Zootopia land could not go into California Adventure yet anyway.

We talked through what might change in a Tomorrowland renovation, guessing that popular rides like Space Mountain, Star Tours, and Buzz Lightyear will likely stay untouched, while something like Autopia, which takes up a large footprint, or the old Captain EO theater space could be reworked. We noted the PeopleMover-style monorail area near Autopia is more limited at Disneyland compared to Walt Disney World, and pointed out that concept art for the Avatar attraction reportedly shows the monorail running alongside it, suggesting whatever gets built there has to work around existing infrastructure.

Internationally, Space Mountain is getting refreshed at both Disneyland Paris, where it will return to a version reimagined around the Jules Verne story that originally inspired the ride, and at Tokyo Disneyland, where a new feature called Earthrise will reportedly launch guests into the cosmos to experience a view of Earth as part of a reimagined Tomorrowland. We compared that concept to an old, more sedate Mission to Mars style walkthrough attraction that some of us associated with getting sick, though we were not fully sure which park that memory came from.

On the Marvel side, a new Indiana Jones ride is coming to Walt Disney World in Orlando centered on the myth of the Jade Serpent, taking guests on a journey beneath a Mayan temple, with Harrison Ford reportedly used as the model for the ride's animatronic Indy, even though our own local Indiana Jones attraction does not look or sound much like him. Hong Kong Disneyland is getting a new Avengers Pavilion built into what is currently a fairly empty area, themed around an Avengers research and testing lab alongside Peter Parker with a new Quinjet landing platform, according to the Disney Parks Blog. Shanghai Disneyland is getting a new roller coaster style Spider-Man ride featuring Spiderbots that looks very different from the version we already have. Closer to home, we are looking forward to the long awaited Avengers Infinity Defense attraction, since we understand the original film actors, including Chris Hemsworth as Thor and Robert Downey Jr., were actually brought in to film new footage for it, which we think matters a lot for how it will land with fans who have been waiting since Avengers Campus first opened with relatively little to actually do beyond a couple of rides.

Which of these announcements are you most excited to see more of?