The Russo brothers have revealed what Marvel comic inspired them to return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe after seemingly ending on a high note with Avengers: Endgame. At San Diego Comic-Con 2024, it was announced that Joe and Anthony Russo, known as the Russo brothers, would be returning to helm the two-part epic Multiverse Saga finale with 2026’s Avengers: Doomsday and 2027’s Avengers: Secret Wars. While the news was slightly undercut by the fact that it leaked online earlier and also upstaged by the revelation that Robert Downey Jr. would be Doctor Doom in the MCU, it was a big moment since the duo seemed to have put the MCU in their rearview mirror as they pursued other projects.
Speaking with Empire, the Russos revealed what brought them back to the MCU after five years away. “We’re very close with Kevin and Lou [D’Esposito, Marvel Studios’ Co-President] and the entire Marvel team and we’ve had conversations through the years. We’ve talked about a lot of ideas. Really what happened was, we ended up stumbling upon an idea that activated all of us,” he teases. “You couldn’t see it coming until it came, and once it came, it was like, ‘Well, that’s a story we need to tell,” said Anthony. Joe added, “There were ideas that we were trying to wrap our heads around that preceded this one, and we just never found the story.”
What clicked into place was when Joe Russo called screenwriter Stephen McFeely, who is penning both upcoming Avengers films, and pitched him on how Secret Wars would look in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Joe said:

“I remember calling Steve and said, ‘Hey, crazy idea. What do you think if we all go back and do Secret Wars?’ You [Stephen McFeely] were like, ‘F— no. Absolutely not.’ And then you hung up. And the next morning at 7.30 you called and were like, ‘Alright, I have an idea.’”

It appears that the directing duo likely had meetings with Marvel on other non-Avengers projects, but when the spot became open to helm Avengers: Secret Wars, the Russos latched onto that idea. This should not be surprising, as the Russos have made it known they would love to make Secret Wars as far back as when Avengers: Endgame was being released in theaters. The duo has been asked multiple times about it, and in 2021, they even seemed to be considering returning to the MCU to adapt the iconic comic storyline. The film never had a director attached, so this might have been in the works for some time and finalized when Destin Daniel Cretton stepped down from directing Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, which was reworked into Avengers: Doomsday.
There is More Than One ‘Secret Wars’

What is fascinating about the Russo’s return to the MCU and their interest in directing Secret Wars is they’ve never specifically said which version of Secret Wars. There are two comics titled Secret Wars — 1984’s Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars and 2015’s Secret Wars. Both have elements in common, including heroes and villains transplanted to a makeshift world called Battleworld, with a powerful being of cosmic proportion instrumenting their battle and Doctor Doom stealing the powers of said cosmic deity. Yet the two storylines are very different in finer details.
Many have assumed Avengers: Secret Wars would likely adopt the 2015 version, with the emphasis on the multiverse and the MCU having referenced incursions in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and The Marvels, which were a significant factor in the 2015 storyline. However, the Russos themselves likely have more familiarity with the 1984 comic, which would have been published when they were teenagers and reading Marvel Comics in their youth. Meanwhile, the 2015 version was published between the directors making Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Captain America: Civil War. They were likely reading it while prepping for Infinity War and Endgame, and it could have inspired them on the epic scope of their two-part Infinity Saga finale.

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While Marvel Studios announced Avengers: Secret Wars back in July 2022, it seems they didn’t have a concrete idea of what the story would be, just that this is where it would all be building to. This certainly puts a lot of expectations on Secret Wars as it needs to not only service many more characters than in Avengers: Endgame but also provide a satisfying conclusion for the Multiverse Saga, which has been a mixed bag among fans and critics alike. Hopefully, the Russos and McFeely can turn out another Endgame-level crowd-pleasing finale.

Avengers: Secret Wars

Release Date

May 7, 2027

Cast

Kathryn Newton
, Jonathan Majors
, Mark Ruffalo
, Benedict Wong
, Hailee Steinfeld
, Dominique Thorne
, Anthony Mackie
, Brie Larson
, Simu Liu
, Benedict Cumberbatch
, Iman Vellani
, Chris Hemsworth
, Xochitl Gomez