The MCU's 2027 Hiatus Means Doomsday Can Blip Past An Old Infinity War Problem

Published Aug 1, 2026, 4:30 PM EDT Kyle is a senior writer at ScreenRant and has been part of the team for over two years. Having led coverage on The Walking Dead projects alongside Rick & Morty, Kyle is well versed in numerous genres. Born in Glasgow, Scotland, Kyle is a passionate journalist who has a keen interest in TV and film. He has six years of experience studying journalism including a HND in Practical Journalism and a BA Honours in Journalism, Media and Communication and History. Alongside his love for TV and film, Kyle enjoys video games, football and Formula 1. With the countdown to Avengers: Doomsday getting ever closer, the hype for Marvel's biggest movie in seven years is growing, and it already looks like it will have one advantage over Avengers: Infinity War. The 2018 masterpiece remains one of the MCU's greatest projects, but Marvel's 2027 release schedule means Doomsday will avoid Infinity War's biggest problem. While there are understandably some concerns that Doctor Doom hasn't had enough build-up and that there isn't a big, overarching story heading into Doomsday, the stakes remain extremely high. As a result, the climax to this movie could be huge ahead of 2027's Avengers: Secret Wars, which will be the only MCU film dropping next year. We're used to seeing Marvel have several big-screen outings every year, meaning Avengers: Secret Wars' release will be a franchise first, as the studio has never had such a quiet period. On paper, this may seem like bad news for superhero fans, as they'll be getting less content, but it will hopefully mean higher quality and greater consequences. For all Infinity War's endless qualities, its mind-blowing cliffhanger suffered from having two projects squeezed between it and Avengers: Endgame, a flaw Doomsday doesn't have to worry about. This gives it room to get bold with its ending and ensures fans will be scrambling with theories about what's next for a full year without any interruptions. Considering Doomsday will treat us to the Avengers vs. the X-Men, Doctor Doom's debut, and some major character returns, there is no room for error regarding such a big release. Therefore, avoiding Infinity War's main drawback puts it on a good trajectory to reach its full potential and be one of the best MCU outings in years. Marvel's Release Schedule Caused A Problem After Avengers: Infinity War To this day, many Marvel fans still consider Avengers: Infinity War the peak of the MCU and for good reason, but the release schedule following the movie did pose a key problem. The movie ended with Thanos winning, as the villain snapped his fingers and wiped out half of the universe's population, including many beloved heroes. Spider-Man, Scarlett Witch, Black Panther, and almost the entire Guardians of the Galaxy were just some of the names that turned to dust in the movie's climax, marking a truly shocking ending to Infinity War. This set up a very bleak tone heading into Endgame with countless questions to be answered, yet the MCU frustratingly had two movies to promote in between. While fans were still reeling about losing such popular characters, Marvel was trying to debut a new hero through Captain Marvel. Considering she had a significant role in Endgame, it made sense to try and introduce the hero ahead of time, and the film taking place in the 1990s actually worked to an extent. It familiarized the audience with this newcomer and gave them hope heading into Endgame without directly disrupting the timeline. That said, it also felt like a weird pivot from a marketing perspective, going from a jaw-dropping cliffhanger to something so different. The real victim of this release schedule though, was Ant-Man 2. Scott Lang's first solo movie remains an underrated hit, but Ant-Man and the Wasp is much more forgettable, mainly due to when it came out. It didn't quite ride Infinity War's box office wave and simply felt out of place between such influential projects, hence why it struggled to leave a lasting impact despite its quality. Marvel Movies from April 2018–April 2019 Release Date Budget Box Office Avengers: Infinity War April 27, 2028 $300–400 million $2.048 billion Ant-Man and the Wasp July 6, 2018 $130–200 million $623.1 million Captain Marvel March 8, 2019 $150–200 million $1.13 billion Avengers: Endgame April 26, 2019 $350–400 million $2.79 billion With Avengers: Infinity War easily being the MCU's best movie at the time, anything following it up was destined to struggle. This tonal shift may have been a bit of a palate cleanser after such a depressing ending, but it would've been better to let this feeling linger at least until Captain Marvel, before Endgame could provide the proper payoff. Instead, trying to promote two other films in the lead-up to arguably the most-anticipated movie of all time felt like a mistake in hindsight, and Marvel Studios has clearly learned its lesson. The MCU Releasing No Movies Between Doomsday & Secret Wars Is An Ominous (But Exciting) Sign Having spent nearly 20 years building the MCU, Marvel clearly knows how to balance multiple movies over the course of a year, making the absence of any theatrical releases between Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars exciting yet ominous. From an audience perspective, it's great, as there will be a whole year dedicated to building hype for Secret Wars. Some fans have felt like the magic around Infinity War hasn't been present during the road to Doomsday, but having so much time to focus on Secret Wars should give it that Endgame feel. Likewise, it also suggests the ending of Doomsday could be familiar, with some potentially huge deaths or a massive cliffhanger. Some eagle-eyed viewers believe Avengers: Doomsday's trailer already spoiled the ending, and if they're right, it looks worrying for the central characters. Add in the fact that Marvel won't be promoting any big blockbusters in between, and we may be about to lose some beloved heroes for good this time. There have been talks about a soft reboot after Secret Wars, and the only way this would make sense is to kill off some of Doomsday's big hitters. This means the likes of Thor, Ant-Man, Steve Rogers, and the returning X-Men characters could be in trouble, as they may finally make way for new versions of these characters, or at least younger replacements. In contrast, Doomsday may end with some of the newer MCU arrivals like the Fantastic Four and new Avengers going MIA, forcing the old guard to sacrifice themselves in Secret Wars to bring them back. Whatever the case, it seems as though the movie's ending will leave a lasting impact, based on Marvel's 2027 release schedule. As we're now officially in unknown territory, it's worth getting excited about Avengers: Doomsday and its various possibilities, while also being concerned about what it means for the fate of our favorite heroes and the MCU as we know it. Does Marvel Release Anything Between Doomsday & Secret Wars? Just because there are no MCU movies on the horizon in 2027 doesn't mean Marvel won't be releasing anything between the upcoming Avengers films. As of now, Daredevil: Born Again season 3 is the only live-action project we can be fairly certain about releasing between Doomsday and Secret Wars, assuming there are no unexpected delays. Seasons 1 and 2 were both released one year apart, suggesting that the show will return around March 2027. While Daredevil could still be involved in the upcoming Avengers projects, it looks like he'll be taking care of the streets with his various allies, which makes sense as an isolated story set before Doomsday. With Daredevil: Born Again season 2's ending leaving the future of many characters uncertain, fans can get excited about what will become of Matt and Kingpin while waiting for Secret Wars. Given that season 3 has also reportedly wrapped filming, it's fair to assume the Disney+ show will be back early next year. We could also see some animated shows return, as X-Men '97 will reportedly have yearly releases going forward, meaning it could premiere in the summer of 2027, just like it did this year. Additionally, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man may try to follow a similar strategy, although season 2 has yet to get a release date for 2026. While the schedule looks light currently, it's unlikely that Marvel will leave fans high and dry following Avengers: Doomsday, especially with how big the brand is these days. Instead, we'll likely get several TV shows that don't directly connect to the overarching MCU story, leaving a nice gap between Avengers films without starving fans of content entirely. Release Date December 18, 2026 Runtime 165 Minutes Director Anthony Russo, Joe Russo Cast Vanessa Kirby Sue Storm / Invisible Woman Johnny Storm / Human Torch Ebon Moss-Bachrach Ben Grimm / The Thing Avengers: Infinity War 6/10 Release Date April 27, 2018 Runtime 149 minutes Avengers: Infinity War is the third Avengers movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Heroes from across the MCU come together as the Avengers fight to take down Thanos before he can collect the Infinity Stones.