Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars will be major milestones in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Not only will Doomsday feature Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) as Captain America, the Thunderbolts, and The Fantastic Four, but it will also see multiple alums from 20th Century Fox’s X-Men movies reprising their roles. Directors Joe and Anthony Russo have also hinted that Avengers: Secret Wars is slated to be a major turning point for the MCU. During an interview, the pair had this to say about their take on Doomsday and Secret Wars: “What’s compelling about these two new Avengers movies is they’re a beginning. It’s a new beginning. We told an ending story, now we’re going to tell a beginning story. And then who knows where we’ll go from there.”
Judging by the shape of those comments, I feel like Avengers: Secret Wars might be ground zero for the MCU to reboot. If it truly is “a new beginning” for the franchise, a reboot sounds like the only way forward. There’s also the fact that the Russos have hinted that 2015’s Secret Wars by Jonathan Hickman and Esad Ribic will be a major inspiration for Avengers: Secret Wars, and that story featured the Marvel Comics Universe undergoing its own restructuring.
The 2015 Version of ‘Secret Wars’ Saw the Marvel Universe Destroyed and Brought Back to Life

Image via Marvel Comics

Secret Wars is the culmination of storylines that Hickman planted throughout his runs on Fantastic Four, Avengers, and New Avengers. When interdimensional incursions threaten reality, the secret superhero society known as the Illuminati plans to save their world by any means necessary — including destroying other worlds before they destroy the Earth. Eventually, there are only two universes left: Earth-616, the mainstream Marvel Universe, and Earth-1610, the Ultimate Marvel Universe. Both worlds are destroyed… but Doctor Doom eventually reforges what’s left of reality into the planet Battleworld and rules it as a god.

Eventually, Reed Richards battles Doom, and their conflict leads to Reed giving birth to the universe including Earth-616. However, there are a few changes: Miles Morales, the Spider-Man of Earth-1610, now calls Earth-616 home while Reed, his wife Sue, and their children Franklin and Valeria travel the newfound multiverse. The Russos have been upfront that 2015’s Secret Wars and the original 1984 Secret Wars are the main inspirations for Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars:

“Well, we always create our own version of the story. So, we use the comics as loose inspiration. But, you know, I grew up on the original run. That’s something that got me into Marvel comic books. The Hickman run is also fantastic [and they’re] very different from each other in a lot of ways, so we’ll draw inspiration from both of them.”

Using the soft reboot approach means that the Russos could develop a new foundation for the MCU, keeping characters that work while doing a new take on concepts that might not have worked. For example, you could still keep Sam Wilson as Captain America, but do a take on Malekith the Accursed from Thor: The Dark World that’s more interesting and more faithful to the comics.
If ‘Avengers: Secret Wars’ Is a Reboot, It Could Give the MCU a Truly Fresh Start

If Avengers: Secret Wars does end up rebooting the MCU, this means that the franchise has a chance to draw in a new fanbase. Over the years, the interconnected nature of the MCU’s films and television series has led to a continuity that resembles the best and the worst of serialized superhero narratives. It feels like one major tapestry, yet there are characters and plot points that can lose new viewers. Having a fresh start cuts away with all that baggage.

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There’s also the fact that a reboot can give other characters time to shine. If The Fantastic Four: First Steps is a success, Marvel’s first family will get more time in the limelight — which is fitting, given The Fantastic Four is the literal bedrock of Marvel Comics. There’s also the chance that a new team of X-Men will make their way to the silver screen; given that the Fox X-Men kickstarted a modern superhero movie boom, it’s only fitting that the MCU’s take begins a new era. As a longtime comic reader, I know that a reboot, when done right, can hook an audience. Avengers: Secret Wars has the potential to close the door on one era of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and open the door to another.

Avengers: Secret Wars

Release Date

May 7, 2027

Franchise(s)

Marvel Cinematic Universe

Robert Downey Jr.

Doctor Doom

Reed Richards / Mr. Fantastic

Sue Storm / Invisible Woman

Joseph Quinn

Johnny Storm / Human Torch