Marvel Studios is making another adjustment to its biggest movie of the year.
Avengers: Doomsday is set to bring the Avengers back to theaters for the first time since 2019’s Avengers: Endgame. Anthony and Joe Russo are directing the blockbuster, which will unite characters from across the Marvel Cinematic Universe and several previously separate franchises.
Robert Downey Jr. returns to the MCU as Doctor Doom, alongside Chris Hemsworth, Anthony Mackie, Florence Pugh, Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Tom Hiddleston, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, and dozens of other Marvel stars.
The movie has already undergone a lengthy production process. Principal photography wrapped in September 2025, but The Hollywood Reporter previously reported that Marvel had a “healthy” amount of additional photography planned ahead of its theatrical release.
Now, with just over three months remaining until Avengers: Doomsday arrives, its theatrical rollout has quietly changed.
‘Avengers: Doomsday' Will Start Playing Earlier
Marvel Studios continues to advertise December 18, 2026, as the official release date for Avengers: Doomsday. However, some movie theaters are now listing screenings beginning one day earlier, on Thursday, December 17.
That means audiences will effectively be able to see Marvel’s next Avengers movie before its advertised Friday opening date through Thursday preview screenings.
Early Thursday screenings are common for major Hollywood releases, even when studios continue to promote the following Friday as the movie’s official release date. In practice, however, December 17 will now mark the first opportunity for many fans to watch Doomsday in theaters.
The change is notable considering how closely Marvel has guarded details surrounding the film. Doomsday is expected to bring together heroes from multiple universes as the MCU’s Multiverse Saga heads toward its conclusion.
Disney is still officially listing Avengers: Doomsday for December 18, so this does not represent another delay or a formal move away from its existing release date.
Instead, the December 17 listings expand the movie’s opening rollout by allowing preview screenings the night before.
The movie previously underwent a much larger release change in May 2025. Disney pushed Avengers: Doomsday from May 1, 2026, to December 18, giving the production several additional months before its theatrical debut.
Its sequel, Avengers: Secret Wars, is currently scheduled to follow on December 17, 2027.
Marvel Is Still Working on ‘Avengers: Doomsday'
The new theatrical listings arrive after months of additional work on Avengers: Doomsday.
David Harbour, who returns as Red Guardian after appearing in Thunderbolts, confirmed earlier this year that he had returned to Pinewood Studios in England for additional filming alongside other members of the Avengers: Doomsday cast.
The work has continued considerably closer to release than principal photography, which initially ran from April to September 2025.
Winston Duke, who reprises his role as M’Baku from the Black Panther movies, recently confirmed that the production was still shooting additional material.
“We just wrapped and are doing some additional photography for Avengers: Doomsday,” Duke said.
That schedule is not entirely unexpected. Joe Russo said in June that he and Anthony Russo expected to continue working on the movie deep into the fall as editing, visual effects, and other post-production work continued.
“We are doing some work still on Doomsday and we’ll be until, probably, they rip it out of our hands in November … We’re in the middle of what we would call pre-production on Secret Wars.”
The scale of Doomsday helps explain the lengthy process. Marvel has assembled one of the largest casts in MCU history, mixing established Avengers with the Fantastic Four and returning actors from Fox’s X-Men movies.
Chris Evans is also returning as Steve Rogers, while Channing Tatum reprises his role as Gambit. Paul Rudd, Sebastian Stan, Letitia Wright, Simu Liu, Lewis Pullman, Joseph Quinn, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Rebecca Romijn, James Marsden, and Alan Cumming are among the other confirmed stars.
Are you excited for Avengers: Doomsday?
