Now that both Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Evans have been confirmed to be cast in Avengers: Doomsday, there are many other brilliant actors that we would love to also see return to the MCU. Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Evans were the faces of the MCU throughout the Infinity Saga as Tony Stark’s Iron Man and Steve Rogers’ Captain America, respectively. Five years after leaving the MCU in 2019’s Avengers: Endgame, both have now been confirmed to return, which creates the opportunity for even more missing MCU stars to join them.
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Instead of returning as Iron Man, Robert Downey Jr. is set to debut as Doctor Doom in Avengers: Doomsday, which means it’s possible that Chris Evans will also be portraying a new character, rather than Captain America. The freedom that the Multiverse Saga offers could allow many more veteran MCU actors to either reprise their old roles or bring new heroes and villains to life in Phase 6. This could give some wasted MCU stars a second chance, while also bringing back some fan-favorites from Marvel Studios’ rich history.
10 Cobie Smulders
Cobie Smulders Was Last Seen In The MCU In Secret Invasion (2023)
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Cobie Smulders made her MCU debut as high-ranking SHIELD agent Maria Hill in 2012’s The Avengers, but she was never utilized by Marvel Studios as much as she could have been. Smulders made appearances in Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Avengers: Age of Ultron, and Spider-Man: Far From Home, among others, before meeting her shocking demise in the premiere episode of 2023’s Secret Invasion. Maria Hill’s death in one of the MCU’s lowest-rated projects was incredibly controversial, and many would prefer for it to be reversed, which could bring Cobie Smulders back to the MCU.
Related “When Marvel Calls […] You Go”: MCU Maria Hill Actor Addresses Whether She’d Return Despite Her Character’s Death
Exclusive: MCU star Cobie Smulders reveals to Screen Rant whether she will ever return to the MCU despite Maria Hill’s shocking Secret Invasion death.
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It would be great for Cobie Smulders to appear as a variant of Maria Hill in Avengers: Doomsday or Secret Wars, perhaps a more comic-accurate version of the character, who could even be the Director of her universe’s SHIELD. Maria Hill was at the center of some of Marvel Comics’ biggest storylines, so she deserved a lot more attention in the live-action MCU, especially considering Cobie Smulders’ brilliant portrayal. Cobie Smulders’ return would be the perfect redemption after Maria Hill’s unexpected and unnecessary death in Secret Invasion.
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9 Idris Elba
Idris Elba Was Last Seen In The MCU In Thor: Love & Thunder (2022)
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Despite early undue controversy about his casting as Heimdall, Idris Elba went on to really make the iconic Asgardian role his own, but, similarly to Maria Hill, Heimdall also met his untimely demise in the MCU. The opening of Avengers: Infinity War saw Thanos prove his strength by killing Heimdall and Loki in quick succession, but, thankfully, both have since returned. Idris Elba reprised the role in the post-credits scene of 2022’s Thor: Love and Thunder, as Heimdall welcomed Jane Foster to Valhalla, and this could be a great jumping-off point for his return in Phase 6.
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Earth’s Mightiest Heroes may need all the help they can get in the battle against Robert Downey Jr.’s Doctor Doom, so it’s possible Thor could enter Valhalla and recruit a number of deceased Asgardian heroes. This could officially bring Heimdall back to the MCU, giving Marvel more opportunity to explore the character’s incredible gifts and develop his relationship with his son, Axl, who wasn’t seen or mentioned prior to Thor: Love and Thunder. Idris Elba has huge star-power, so it would be great to see him return in Avengers: Doomsday or Secret Wars.
8 Gwyneth Paltrow
Gwyneth Paltrow Was Last Seen In The MCU In Avengers: Endgame (2019)
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Since Robert Downey Jr. is returning to the MCU, it would make sense for Gwyneth Paltrow to also come back. Paltrow portrayed Pepper Potts, Tony Stark’s love interest, between 2008’s Iron Man and 2019’s Avengers: Endgame, and the latter even saw her suit up in her own Iron Man-esque suit of armor as Rescue. Downey Jr. will be playing the villainous Doctor Doom in Avengers: Doomsday, so it would be interesting to see how Pepper Potts reacts to a villain who looks like her deceased husband and the father of her child.
Tony Stark and Pepper Potts had a daughter, Morgan Stark, during
Avengers: Endgame’s
Blip, but neither Pepper nor Morgan have been seen or heard from in the five years since.
It’s also possible that Gwyneth Paltrow could be recast in the MCU similarly to Robert Downey Jr., perhaps even as a love interest to Victor Von Doom. Perhaps Doom’s most notable love interest in Marvel Comics was Valeria, his childhood sweetheart in Latveria, so this could be a great potential role for Gwyneth Paltrow in Avengers: Doomsday. In recent years, Paltrow has been the subject of some controversy, so she could use a return to the MCU to build back her good reputation.
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7 Clark Gregg
Clark Gregg Was Last Seen In The MCU In Captain Marvel (2019)
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Throughout the MCU’s Phase 1, Clark Gregg’s SHIELD agent Phil Coulson helped Nick Fury find and recruit superhero candidates for the Avengers team, and he quickly became a fan-favorite character. This made his tragic death in The Avengers even more heartbreaking, and while he was resurrected in the alternate timeline of the Agents of SHIELD series, Phil Coulson has remained dead in the MCU since Phase 1. Clark Gregg did reprise the role for the 1995-set Captain Marvel, but it would be great to see Phil Coulson return in the MCU’s present continuity.
Related Marvel Brings Back Its Biggest Agents Of SHIELD Character, But Will The Rest Return?
What If…? is one of the most brilliant and creative shows from the MCU, and it’s the perfect place to bring back some forgotten characters.
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Since Phil Coulson was such a pivotal part of the Avengers’ original formation in Phase 1, it would be great to see him reunite with some of this original team in Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars. This could, of course, see Clark Gregg portray a variant of Coulson, perhaps even the version of the character from Agents of SHIELD, which could provide a definite answer to the canon status of Marvel Television series. Clark Gregg continues to have a relationship with Marvel, and will next be heard in What If…? season 3, so his return to live-action is very likely.
6 Natalie Portman
Natalie Portman Was Last Seen In The MCU In Thor: Love & Thunder (2022)
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Natalie Portman’s Jane Foster has been Thor’s primary love interest throughout his entire MCU career, despite only having appeared in three MCU movies. Natalie Portman is one of the most recognizable and talented actors of her generation, so it would be a shame for her to not be included in the MCU’s upcoming crossover events, especially after she finally became a superhero in her own right in Thor: Love and Thunder. Wielding the thought-lost Mjolnir, Foster became the Mighty Thor, but tragically lost her life in Thor: Love and Thunder despite her new abilities.
|
Natalie Portman’s MCU Project |
Year |
Role |
|---|---|---|
|
Thor |
2011 |
Main Role |
|
Thor: The Dark World |
2013 |
Main Role |
|
What If…? Season 1, Episode 7 |
2021 |
Main Voice Role |
|
Thor: Love and Thunder |
2022 |
Main Role as Mighty Thor |
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If Chris Hemsworth’s Thor finds himself entering Valhalla to recruit warriors, including Heimdall, for the battle against Doctor Doom, Marvel will have the perfect opportunity to also bring back Natalie Portman as Jane Foster. Since she fought as the Asgardian hero, the Mighty Thor, in Thor: Love and Thunder, Foster was welcomed into Valhalla after her death, which perfectly mirrored her Marvel Comics history. Her resurrection is the best next step, and Natalie Portman has voiced her interest in returning, so this would be great to see in the MCU’s Phase 6.
5 Aaron Taylor-Johnson
Aaron Taylor-Johnson Was Last Seen In The MCU In Avengers: Age Of Ultron (2015)
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Aaron Taylor-Johnson is perhaps one of the most wasted actors ever to join the MCU, as he debuted as Pietro Maximoff’s Quicksilver, a legendary character from Marvel Comics, back in 2015’s Avengers: Age of Ultron, and lost his life in the same movie. Quicksilver has been a huge part of Marvel Comics’ X-Men and Avengers storylines since his first appearance in 1964, so it was a massive insult to see him killed off in his first MCU movie. Aaron Taylor-Johnson did a brilliant job at bringing Quicksilver to life, so he deserves redemption in Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars.
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Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s Quicksilver is the twin brother of Elizabeth Olsen’s Wanda Maximoff, a.k.a. the Scarlet Witch, who went on to have a brilliant MCU journey after her debut alongside her brother in
Captain America: The Winter Soldier
and
Avengers: Age of Ultron
.
Now that Marvel Studios has creative control of mutants and the X-Men, it would be fantastic to see Aaron Taylor-Johnson return as Pietro Maximoff. Should Wanda Maximoff also return, it would be great to see them explore some of their connections to the world of mutants, even though their own mutant history in Marvel Comics was retconned in 2015. Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s recent stint in Kraven the Hunter could mean that he’d also bring this new Spider-Man-related character into the MCU, particularly since his debut movie as Kraven has not been well-received.
4 Josh Brolin
Josh Brolin Was Last Seen In The MCU In Avengers: Endgame (2019)
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Back in February 2024, Josh Brolin revealed to ComicBook that he had heard whispers of Thanos being brought back to the MCU. The Mad Titan was the primary antagonist of the Infinity Saga who waged war on Earth’s Mightiest Heroes in Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame in hopes of acquiring the six Infinity Stones. Thanos proved himself to be one of the MCU’s most powerful and unstoppable villains, so it would be amazing to see Josh Brolin reprise the role, especially since Thanos has a pivotal role in Marvel Comics’ Secret Wars event from 2015.
You know, I hear kind of like through the grapevine, that they’re gonna bring him back. And there’s the
What If…?
series and that’s a different kind of Thanos and all that. But I don’t know in the Marvel world whether they’re going to bring him back, but I didn’t know that he was the most killed-off Marvel villain … You learn something new every day.
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While it would be great to see Josh Brolin back in action as Thanos, it’s also possible he could return as Cable after Deadpool & Wolverine bridged the gap between the MCU and Fox’s X-Men franchise. Brolin’s Cable first appeared in 2018’s Deadpool 2, and was noticeably absent from Deadpool & Wolverine, so it would be great to see him get a reprise. Josh Brolin is a fantastic actor with a huge amount of range, so it would be a huge benefit to Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars to include him among the cast in some capacity.
3 Ty Simpkins
Ty Simpkins Was Last Seen In The MCU In Avengers: Endgame (2019)
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Ty Simpkins first appeared in the MCU as the child in Tennessee who helps Tony Stark investigate Aldrich Killian, the so-called “Mandarin,” and the Extremis explosions in 2013’s Iron Man 3. Harley Keener seemed to have been set up to have a larger role in the MCU, especially after Stark gifted a huge array of new gadgets to the kid as a means of saying ‘thank you.’ However, Simpkins has only reprised the role once six-years-later, appearing at Tony Stark’s funeral in Avengers: Endgame, so it’s high time he came back to the MCU permanently.
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Now 23-years-old, Ty Simpkins could appear in Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars as a superhero in his own right, perhaps leading to him joining the MCU’s upcoming Young Avengers team. Early speculation suggested Simpkins’ MCU character could have been a variant of Kang the Conqueror, perhaps Iron Lad, though it seems Marvel Studios won’t address this connection now that Phase 6’s focus has moved onto Doctor Doom. The fact that Robert Downey Jr. is returning, however, means now would be the perfect time to bring Harley Keener back to the MCU.
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2 Elizabeth Olsen
Elizabeth Olsen Was Last Seen In The MCU In Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness (2022)
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While it would be great to see Aaron Taylor-Johnson bring Quicksilver back into the MCU, this would be even better if Elizabeth Olsen also reprises her role of his sister, Wanda Maximoff’s Scarlet Witch. Quicksilver may have lost his life in Avengers: Age of Ultron, but the Scarlet Witch went on to have a lengthy career in the MCU, becoming one of the franchise’s most popular heroes and most terrifying villains. The Scarlet Witch sacrificed herself to destroy the Darkhold in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, but Elizabeth Olsen’s return has nevertheless been heavily rumored.
Wanda Maximoff embraced her identity as the Scarlet Witch in
WandaVision
, but her use of the Darkhold then corrupted her and transformed her into a villain in
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
, as she chased America Chavez and Doctor Strange across the multiverse.
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Both Marvel Studios and Elizabeth Olsen have teased the concept of Wanda Maximoff returning to the MCU in Phase 6, so this seems very likely to happen. The Scarlet Witch seems primed to reappear alongside Doctor Doom, just as she does after the House of M storyline in Marvel Comics, which loosely inspired 2021’s WandaVision series. After Agatha All Along brought back Billy and Tommy Maximoff, now is the perfect time for the Scarlet Witch to return to the MCU, so it surely won’t be long before Elizabeth Olsen is back in action.
1 Scarlett Johansson
Scarlett Johansson Was Last Seen In The MCU In Black Widow (2021)
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Even though she was one of the first heroes featured in the MCU, making her debut in 2010’s Iron Man 2, Scarlett Johansson’s Natasha Romanoff, a.k.a. Black Widow, was also one of Marvel’s most wasted characters. She was a founding member of the Avengers, a formidable SHIELD agent, a sister and daughter, and a hero willing to sacrifice her own life for the greater good, but Marvel Studios never gave Natasha Romanoff the attention she deserved. Even her first solo MCU movie, 2021’s Black Widow, failed to explore the Natasha Romanoff stories audiences really wanted to see.
|
Scarlett Johansson’s MCU Project |
Year |
Role |
|---|---|---|
|
Iron Man 2 |
2010 |
Minor Role |
|
The Avengers |
2012 |
Main Role |
|
Captain America: The Winter Soldier |
2014 |
Main Role |
|
Avengers: Age of Ultron |
2015 |
Main Role |
|
Captain America: Civil War |
2016 |
Main Role |
|
Thor: Ragnarok |
2017 |
Archive Footage |
|
Avengers: Infinity War |
2018 |
Main Role |
|
Captain Marvel |
2019 |
Post-Credits Cameo |
|
Avengers: Endgame |
2019 |
Main Role |
|
Loki Season 1, Episode 1 |
2021 |
Archive Footage |
|
Black Widow |
2021 |
Lead Role |
|
Thunderbolts* |
2025 |
Executive Producer |
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Despite her legal dispute with Disney, it seems Scarlett Johansson’s relationship with Marvel is still strong, as she is credited as an executive producer on 2025’s Thunderbolts*. This makes her return possible, and since both Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Evans have been cast in Avengers: Doomsday, and Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo and Jeremy Renner will likely be included, Johansson may be the only original Avenger actor who is not yet returning. It would be fantastic to see her reunite with her Avengers family, even if she assumes a different role to retain Black Widow’s heartfelt sacrifice in Avengers: Endgame.
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Avengers: Doomsday Superhero
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.. Avengers 5 will also mark the beginning of phase 6 of the MCU.
Release Date May 1, 2026
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Upcoming MCU Movies
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Captain America: Brave New World
Release Date February 14, 2025
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Thunderbolts*
Release Date May 2, 2025
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The Fantastic Four: First Steps
Release Date July 25, 2025
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Avengers: Doomsday (2026)
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Spider-Man Homecoming 4
Release Date July 24, 2026
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Avengers: Secret Wars
Release Date May 7, 2027
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