The world has been abuzz with the words Avengers: Doomsday for the past week. Marvel Studios' unexpected - and somewhat unprecedented - five-hour livestream became one of the biggest talking points in the entertainment sphere of the year so far (quite possibly the biggest, actually) as they took the opportunity to slowly announce the cast of names who would be gracing the screen in the next Avengers movie.
It was capped off by an appearance from Robert Downey Jr., who returns to the Marvel Cinematic Universe in the new role of villain Doctor Doom, as the studio officially announced that Avengers: Doomsday was in production. Production of that movie is taking place in the UK throughout the spring and summer as the MCU prepares to bring a close to the Multiverse Saga with the first of two upcoming Avengers movies.
Now, the first photo from the set has been released online and it showcases some familiar faces.
First Avengers set photo calls back to iconic MCU heroes
The first photo from the set of Avengers: Doomsday has surfaced (and can be viewed here in a tweet), showcasing what anyone who walks onto the set sees. A notice with the official Marvel Studios logo on it, it informs anyone reading it that they are about to enter a restricted area and that no photography is allowed beyond that point. That's normal for a set notice as closed sets don't allow photography beyond the warning point. What is interesting, however, is that notice also features three icons - two of which represent heroes that aren't officially confirmed for the movie.
The Avengers logo is in the middle, as it should be - this is an Avengers movie, after all - but the graphic also features a Spider-Man graphic and an Iron Man graphic. This has already resulted in fans speculating whether the two legendary MCU heroes are in the movie. And if that's the case, it confirms the speculation that the confirmed cast list for Avengers: Doomsday isn't the whole cast after all.
Robert Downey Jr. portrayed Iron Man throughout his time in the MCU but the character died in 2019's Avengers: Endgame. Although Downey will be back for Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars, he will be playing the new role of Doctor Doom. With that in mind, the usage of the Iron Man logo has fans speculating if he could also play Tony Stark in some capacity. It's an understandable thought too; it wouldn't feel right to pay tribute to all of the worlds in the MCU Multiverse without referencing Iron Man in some way.
Similarly, Tom Holland's Spider-Man was not among the confirmed cast and characters for Avengers: Doomsday, sending fans into a spiral because he was one of the names expected to appear in it (and he's also one of the faces of the MCU). Rumor has it that Spider-Man 4, which Holland will be filming this summer, takes place at the same time as Avengers: Doomsday, meaning that Spidey couldn't be in two places at once, but the webslinger is still expected to be one of the surprises in Doomsday - even if it's simply a post-credits appearance.
It's quite possible that the Marvel Studios logo seen in the set photo is just that - a logo featuring some of Marvel's most popular heroes - the speculation as to whether this is a confirmation that Iron Man and Spider-Man will appear in Avengers: Doomsday has begun. Some have pointed out the inclusion of Spider-Man as being particularly curious due to the fact that the characters' movie rights are currently owned by Sony (and not Marvel), believing that it simply has to suggest he's in the movie.
We'll have to wait and see, but this is an unexpectedly exciting reveal considering that production on the blockbuster has only just begun.
Avengers: Doomsday arrives in movie theaters on May 1, 2026.