Marvel Studios Abandons Kevin Feige’s Original Plan for Avengers 5

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The upcoming Avengers movie, Avengers: Doomsday, releasing later this year, isn’t the original plan from 2022. Doomsday, scheduled for December 18, 2026, will be the fifth Avengers film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

I was so excited when Marvel first announced Avengers: The Kang Dynasty! It seemed like they were building towards this huge, multiverse-spanning story with Jonathan Majors as the big bad, Kang the Conqueror, and it was all going to lead into Avengers: Secret Wars. But things changed quickly. Marvel had to scrap the Kang Dynasty idea and now they’re going with Doomsday instead. It’s a big shift, but I’m still hopeful for what’s to come!

Following his conviction on charges of reckless assault and second-degree harassment, Jonathan Majors, known for playing Kang in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, was fired. This has led to significant changes and a complete overhaul of the upcoming Avengers movie.

As a result of this choice, an early and now abandoned version of Avengers 5 exists—a version of the film that was apparently well into production but will never be released.

Breaking Down The Changing Avenger 5 Plan

Release Shift & New Filmmakers

Before the recent issues with Jonathan Majors came to light, significant changes were already happening with Avengers 5. Shortly after the movie was first announced at San Diego Comic-Con in 2022, Destin Daniel Cretton was confirmed as the director, and a release date of May 2025 was set.

Destin Daniel Cretton was fresh off the success of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings when he was brought on board, which thrilled fans. The initial draft of the film was later written by Jeff Loveness, who also wrote the screenplay for Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania.

Soon after that, everything changed. The first sign was the movie’s release date being moved back a full year as part of a larger adjustment to the studio’s plans, initially setting it for May 2026. It would be delayed again, ultimately landing in December 2026, but that first change was just the start of a series of shifts.

Shortly after Jonathan Majors’ highly publicized arrest in November 2023, director Destin Daniel Cretton announced he was leaving The Kang Dynasty to concentrate on other Marvel projects. These included the upcoming Wonder Man series, Spider-Man: Brand New Day, and the planned sequel to Shang-Chi.

Shortly after Cretton’s departure from the project, Michael Waldron, known for his work on Loki, took over as the writer for Avengers 5. Then, just over a month later, Jonathan Majors was convicted of reckless assault and harassment, leading to his removal from the film and reports that Marvel Studios was completely rethinking the movie.

After the initial announcement, the studio didn’t discuss the movie for many months. Almost a year later, they revealed a new direction for it at Comic-Con 2024. Marvel Studios announced that Avengers 5 would no longer be called The Kang Dynasty; instead, the movie would be titled Avengers: Doomsday.

Adding to the excitement, the directors of the previous Avengers films, Joe and Anthony Russo, will be directing this movie and its follow-up. Plus, Robert Downey Jr. is returning to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but instead of playing Iron Man, he’ll be taking on the role of the main villain, Doctor Doom.

A Very Different Avengers Cast

The biggest difference between the planned Kang Dynasty and Doomsday movies, as far as we know, was who the main villains would have been.

Jonathan Majors was originally planned to play a central role as Kang in what would have been the fifth Avengers movie. Jeff Loveness, a writer on the project, explained that Kang was intended to be the main character, essentially driving the story. He revealed in March 2023 that the film was secretly “a Kang movie,” with the villain embarking on a mission across different realities.

I’m aiming to portray the character as his own hero, much like Kang the Conqueror and Ant-Man saw themselves – though he might not call himself a hero. He’s driven by a strong purpose, almost like he’s on a mission. While it’s fundamentally a story about Kang, we also need to keep the overall narrative moving forward for the Avengers. Ultimately, I envision this as a Kang-focused film.

Does that sound familiar? Fans have heard similar talk about Doctor Doom’s part in Avengers: Doomsday. Back in September 2025, insider Alex Perez claimed Doctor Doom will be the central figure – or ‘hero’ – of the movie, much like Thanos was the main character in Avengers: Infinity War.

If Kang the Conqueror had been played by a different actor, the Avengers team would have looked quite different. A big part of what makes Avengers: Doomsday exciting is its cast of characters from across the multiverse, including the newly introduced Fantastic Four (played by Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach) and classic X-Men characters. However, this diverse team wouldn’t have been part of the original plan for the first Avengers movie.

In an interview in March 2023, writer Jeff Loveness explained that the Fantastic Four wouldn’t be appearing in his Avengers movie. He stated they likely wouldn’t even be included.

The future didn’t look much brighter for the X-Men either. Writer Michael Loveness indicated that their involvement in the Avengers movie was unlikely in the near future, stating, “I think that’s being saved for a bit.”

I don’t think we’ll see things like the X-Men joining the Avengers anytime soon. While a Fantastic Four movie is happening, it’s separate from all that. I’m a huge X-Men fan, but I believe those stories are being held back for now. The Avengers already have their hands full with Kang and a lot of other challenges.

Everything has shifted with the arrival of Doomsday, establishing these classic Marvel teams as central figures in the upcoming Avengers 5. The cast of both films includes Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova, Simu Liu as Shang-Chi, and Anthony Mackie as Captain America.

Plot Details and Tonal Tidbits

While Avengers: Doomsday still shares some elements with The Kang Dynasty, particularly regarding its scope and connection to the multiverse, the overall story and how it’s told are very different.

Details about the original plan for Avengers 5 have been scarce, but some information has emerged over time. Destin Daniel Cretton, who was originally directing the film, has said that Kang Dynasty was intended to be a more realistic Avengers story, despite its connection to the multiverse.

We had several good conversations that lasted a long time. He’s very open-minded, kind, and down-to-earth, and his work reflects those qualities.

The movie would have featured Earth’s heroes – including Captain Marvel, Yelena Belova, and the Ant-Man team – battling Kang the Conqueror as he takes over worlds throughout the Multiverse. They would have faced different versions of him from various realities.

The movie could have been quite bleak, but it also had the potential to be the funniest Marvel Cinematic Universe film yet. Writer Jeff Loveness previously worked on the popular show Rick and Morty, and he could have brought that same kind of humor to the Avengers script, making it a lot more comedic than other superhero team-ups.

The humor likely landed so well because rumors circulated that a major character, possibly Paul Rudd’s Scott Lang, would die in the movie.

Based on the trailers for the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday movie, it looks like it will continue the more serious and intense tone hinted at in The Kang Dynasty. The trailers suggest that the arrival of Doom will cause major problems for multiple realities within the Marvel Multiverse, setting a dark and bleak atmosphere for the 2026 film.

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2026-03-27 07:37