Predicting Which 10 Marvel Characters Will Have The Most Screen Time In Avengers: Doomsday

Published Jul 28, 2026, 10:00 AM EDT George is a film critic and journalist with over nine years of experience in the entertainment industry. Beginning as the Co-Creator and Co-Editor of Star Wars Holocron, the most followed Star Wars fan account on Twitter/X, George went on to develop The HoloFiles, a movie and television-focused website with his brother and writing partner Josh. A member of the Hollywood Creative Alliance, Chicago Indie Critics, Online Film and Television Association, and the Internet Film Critic Society, George has covered major industry events as credentialed media, including D23, CinemaCon, SXSW, Fantastic Fest, Star Wars Celebration, Tribeca Festival, and more. He also regularly writes reviews and contributes articles to ScreenAnarchy, BRWC, Film Obsessive, TV Obsessive, and Under the Radar. George's work has been featured in various esteemed publications, including the BBC, Associated Press, Forbes, and The New York Times. In a year featuring epic fantasy dramas from Christopher Nolan, the third and final chapter of the Dune saga, a new Spider-Man movie, and more massive cinematic events, Marvel Studios' Avengers: Doomsday seemingly reigns supreme as 2026’s most anticipated movie. This status became all the more clear in the hours and days following the recent release of the first full trailer for the film, which amassed over 500 million views in its first 24 hours and correlated with an incredible $16.5 million gross in ticket sales within the first day of tickets being available. Many questions surround Avengers: Doomsday, some of which pertain to how the film will juggle so many different characters from across the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s ever-expanding multiverse. Such inquiries have led to speculation about what characters will play the most important roles in the film and, in turn, have the most screen time. A careful analysis of existing promotional material and calculated consideration of fan theories about what the upcoming film will entail offers potential answers to these queries, which provide a clearer picture of what Avengers: Doomsday will ultimately look like. 10 Charles Xavier / Professor X Patrick Stewart reprises his role as Charles Xavier for the first time in nine years, since his deeply moving performance in 2017’s Logan. Stewart features in only a few shots of the teasers and full trailer released for Avengers: Doomsday so far, but all signs point to him playing a fairly sizable role in the film. Much of the marketing for Avengers: Doomsday has surrounded the conflict between the Avengers and X-Men, with some going so far as to dub the film an Avengers vs. X-Men movie. As such, it makes sense that the leader of the X-Men - Professor X - would play a prominent role in the story. Without actors like Hugh Jackman and Halle Berry officially announced to be back as their X-Men characters, the X-Men will need a leading on-screen presence in Doomsday and surely that role will be occupied by Stewart, although confidence isn’t too high that Professor X will make it out of the movie alive. 9 Shuri / Black Panther The four teasers for Avengers: Doomsday that released several months ago pointed to four corners of the Marvel Cinematic Universe uniting to face Doom. One of these corners is Wakanda, which includes M’Baku, Namor (given the events of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever), and, of course, Shuri. Given Shuri’s prominence in the last Black Panther outing and the MCU’s positioning of her as the new Black Panther, it makes sense that Letitia Wright’s character will serve as the face of the Wakandans in Avengers: Doomsday. The box office performance of Wakanda Forever relative to other recent MCU efforts suggests that Kevin Feige and the creative minds at Marvel Studios will be eager to position Shuri relatively front and center, especially given it has been four years since the character has made a live-action appearance. 8 Scott Lang / Ant-Man Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania laid the foundation for Paul Rudd’s lovable thief-turned-superhero to play a sizable role in upcoming Avengers movies, but that seemingly changed upon the pivot away from Kang and toward Doctor Doom. Despite this shift, however, Scott Lang is still positioned to be a significant player in Avengers: Doomsday. Paul Rudd’s comedic talents were used to tremendous effect in Avengers: Endgame, so using the Anchorman actor in a similar role in Avengers: Doomsday would be a reasonable assumption. The trailer for Doomsday suggests that a darker, more ominous MCU outing is in store, but the film will still require levity and, amidst more somber characters like Thor and Bucky Barnes, it may just find this levity in the form of Ant-Man. 7 Sam Wilson / Captain America Captain America: Brave New World underperformed at the box office, and yet Anthony Mackie’s Sam Wilson is still positioned to make his presence known in Avengers: Doomsday. As the leader of the Avengers, Wilson will almost certainly be a key figure in facing off against Doom and preventing the incoming multiversal disaster. Mackie is a personality, both on and off-screen, and always adds something different to the MCU outings he features in. He’s assured and confident, yet sassy and witty, making him a character that the Russo Brothers can bend and manipulate to check a number of boxes in their new film. Moreover, while Chris Evans returns as Steve Rogers in the film, promotional materials suggest that Evans will primarily occupy the role of Nomad, rather than Captain America. Given how iconic the Captain America name and logo is, that role will seemingly be filled by Mackie’s character. 6 Reed Richards / Mister Fantastic Anyone familiar with Marvel comics will know that the Fantastic Four are intimately connected to Doctor Doom, meaning their likely notable roles in Avengers: Doomsday seems like a no-brainer. Theories suggest that Doctor Doom will enter the fold side-by-side with the Fantastic Four, suggesting that Reed Richards will be front and center from the get-go. The recent Secret Wars comic run, which is the basis for the forthcoming Avengers movies, centers around the rivalry between Richards and Doom. As such, Richards is highly likely to be one of the characters with the most screen time. Additionally, Pedro Pascal is arguably the most prolific and in-demand A-list actor working today, and Marvel Studios will likely want to capitalize on the actor’s fame and recognition by having him serve as one of the key figures in Avengers: Doomsday. 5 Sue Storm / Invisible Woman Credit: Marvel Studios Perhaps even more important to Doom’s story than Reed Richards is, Sue Storm is a safe bet to be one of the characters with the most screen time in Avengers: Doomsday. The 2015 Secret Wars comic centers around Doom’s supreme ego, jealousy, and desire to steal Reed Richards’ life, which entails being in a relationship with Sue Storm. Even if the upcoming entry doesn’t exactly adapt this throughline from Secret Wars, Sue Storm will probably be a notable player in the battle against Doom. In addition to Vanessa Kirby’s stardom, Sue is one of the few characters to have a pre-existing conflict with Doom heading into Doomsday. In the post-credits scene for The Fantastic Four: First Steps, Sue walks in on Doctor Doom infiltrating her home and speaking with her son, Franklin. 4 Yelena Belova Florence Pugh has had a meteoric rise in the film industry over the past decade and is easily one of the biggest stars Avengers: Doomsday has to offer. As such, her character Yelena Belova is positioned to be one of the central players in the film and will likely be the female character with the most screen time. Thunderbolts* may have underwhelmed at the box office, but it was met with critical acclaim, much of which pertained to Pugh’s nuanced and vulnerable performance in the film. As the leader of The New Avengers, Yelena represents the figurehead of one of the four aforementioned corners of the MCU facing off against Doom, which indicates she will be an important figure in the story. 3 Steve Rogers Chris Evans was not announced to be part of the Avengers: Doomsday cast during last year’s hours-long cast reveal, but promotional material since then has heavily emphasized Evans’ role in the film. Evans appeared on-stage at CinemaCon 2026 alongside Downey Jr. to discuss the film, received his own teaser trailer months ago, and underlies the big punch that the full trailer concludes on. All of this suggests that Steve Rogers is an integral piece of Avengers: Doomsday’s narrative. Mixed reception to post-Avengers: Endgame MCU outings has seemingly led Kevin Feige and company to return to basics, which means centering their big team-up movie around ‘the big three’ again. As one of ‘the big three,’ and given the Russo Brothers’ description of Doomsday as a sequel to Avengers: Endgame, it seems likely that Steve Rogers will be one of, if not, the most prominent heroes in the film. 2 Thor Thor is the driving force behind the recently released trailer for Avengers: Doomsday. His ominous monologue about the danger Doom poses sets the tone for the trailer, he features on a number of occasions in the footage, and he received his own teaser trailer months ago, all of which indicate the God of Thunder will be the primary opponent facing off against Downey Jr.’s supervillain. Coupled with Hemsworth’s undeniable star-power, Thor’s sizable role in the film makes sense from an in-universe perspective given that he is one of the most powerful and formidable heroes the MCU has to offer. The likes of Bucky Barnes, Reed Richards, and Black Panther all know how to hold their own, but none of them compare to the might of Thor - a might that will be required to go head-to-head with a villain as powerful as Doom. 1 Doctor Doom Based on a myriad of factors and data points, all signs point to Robert Downey Jr.’s Doctor Doom having the most screen time of any character in Avengers: Doomsday. Speaking to the appeal of Downey’s return to the franchise, arguably the hype around the entire ensemble put together does not equate to the anticipation fans have for seeing what Downey does in a decidedly different role in the MCU. A single actor transitioning from the franchise’s central hero to central villain has never been done before and remains the film’s most intriguing element heading into the December 18 release date. Additionally, Downey Jr. has a level of stardom no other actor in the ensemble comes close to. He won an Academy Award for his role in Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer and is arguably the best actor Doomsday has in its remarkably impressive ensemble of award-winners and A-listers. Avengers: Doomsday also appears to be borrowing from Avengers: Infinity War’s playbook in positioning the bad guy as the central character. Infinity War did this to tremendous effect with Thanos and the prominence with which Downey has featured in the build-up to the film so far suggests that Avengers: Doomsday will do for Doctor Doom what Infinity War did for Thanos. Avengers: Doomsday Release Date December 18, 2026 Runtime 165 Minutes Director Anthony Russo, Joe Russo Writers Stephen McFeely, Michael Waldron, Jack Kirby, Stan Lee Producers Anthony Russo, Joe Russo, Kevin Feige Prequel(s) Spider-Man: Brand New Day Cast Vanessa Kirby Sue Storm / Invisible Woman Johnny Storm / Human Torch Ebon Moss-Bachrach Ben Grimm / The Thing Avengers: Doomsday is the fifth Avengers film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and will bring together heroes, new and old, to face off against Victor von Doom - played by the returning Robert Downey Jr. The upcoming film notably marks the beginning of Phase 6 of the MCU.