Marvel Studios gave fans a long list of names when it revealed the cast of Avengers: Doomsday (2026), but that enormous announcement didn't tell the entire story.
Months after Marvel unveiled its lineup, directors Anthony and Joe Russo have confirmed there are still more names waiting in the wings.
That makes some of the biggest omissions from the original announcement even more interesting, especially after Marvel released new footage connecting familiar MCU characters to the upcoming crossover.
For anyone who thought Marvel had already shown its full hand, that clearly isn't the case.
Marvel’s Original Reveal Left Some Big Questions
Marvel made an event out of announcing the Avengers: Doomsday (2026) cast in March 2025.
During an hours-long livestream, chairs appeared one by one, each bearing an actor's name, gradually revealing a massive cast of characters from across the Marvel universe.
But even with such a long list, several familiar names never appeared.
Mark Ruffalo was among the most noticeable omissions. Ruffalo has played Bruce Banner/Hulk in the MCU since The Avengers (2012), including major appearances in the Russo brothers' Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and Avengers: Endgame (2019).
Now, Marvel has given fans another reason to question whether his absence from the announcement really means much.
Bruce Banner Comes Face-to-Face With Doctor Doom
Avengers: Endgame Encore (2026) brought additional footage connected to Avengers: Doomsday (2026) to theaters.
One of those scenes puts Bruce Banner directly in the path of the MCU's next major villain.
Banner encounters Doctor Doom, played by Robert Downey Jr., creating what appears to be a major connection between Ruffalo's character and Doomsday.
Marvel still left Ruffalo out of its original cast announcement, but the footage certainly suggests he could return.
More importantly, the Russo brothers aren't pretending Marvel has revealed everyone.
The Russos Confirm There’s More Coming
While discussing the Ruffalo footage, Anthony Russo addressed the questions surrounding Marvel's cast.
“The pattern that you’re sensing is real,” Russo said. “We have absolutely not announced the entire cast. There is more to come.”
That makes the original March 2025 reveal look much less definitive.
Marvel offered another interesting development through Avengers: Endgame Encore (2026). The rerelease extends the scene in which Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) and Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell) dance together.
This time, Loki (Tom Hiddleston) arrives and knocks on their door.
With Doomsday tied closely to Marvel's Multiverse Saga, those scenes create even more opportunities for familiar characters to become involved.
Several Major Marvel Names Remain Unconfirmed
Ruffalo now has an obvious connection to the movie through the new footage, but several other major names remain firmly in speculative territory.
Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man could potentially return after Marvel brought legacy characters together in Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021).
Ryan Reynolds' Deadpool and Hugh Jackman's Wolverine are other possibilities after Deadpool & Wolverine (2024) connected both characters to Marvel's larger Multiverse story.
Then there are established MCU heroes who remain absent from the announced lineup.
Jeremy Renner's Hawkeye, Benedict Cumberbatch's Doctor Strange, and Elizabeth Olsen's Wanda Maximoff could potentially become involved. Marvel hasn't confirmed any of them, however, so those possibilities remain speculation.
The Confirmed Cast Is Already Enormous
Even without those names, Marvel has assembled a huge cast for Avengers: Doomsday (2026).
Robert Downey Jr. will sit at the center of the story as Doctor Doom, marking his return to the MCU after spending years as Iron Man.
Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Captain America (Anthony Mackie), Shuri (Letitia Wright), Ant-Man (Paul Rudd), Shang-Chi (Simu Liu), Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan), M'Baku (Winston Duke), Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), Red Guardian (David Harbour), Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen), and U.S. Agent (Wyatt Russell) are among the announced characters.
Marvel is also pulling heavily from the X-Men world.
Magneto (Ian McKellen), Professor X (Patrick Stewart), Cyclops (James Marsden), Nightcrawler (Alan Cumming), Mystique (Rebecca Romijn), Beast (Kelsey Grammer), and Gambit (Channing Tatum) will all appear.
The Fantastic Four will join them, with Mister Fantastic (Pedro Pascal), Invisible Woman (Vanessa Kirby), Human Torch (Joseph Quinn), and The Thing (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) rounding out that team.
Marvel Isn’t Finished Yet
That cast would already make Avengers: Doomsday (2026) one of Marvel's biggest crossover events.
But the Russos have now made one thing clear: Marvel still has names left to reveal.
Banner's encounter with Doom gives fans another major clue, but it doesn't confirm every rumored return. Maguire, Reynolds, Jackman, Renner, Cumberbatch, and Olsen remain speculative.
Marvel may have already revealed an enormous cast, but the final Doomsday lineup could be even bigger.
