Avengers: Doomsday · in cinemas 18 December 2026
What to watch before Doomsday
32 entries · about 77 h
Avengers: Doomsday pulls in more of Marvel's screen history than any film before it. The New Avengers from Thunderbolts*, the Fantastic Four from Earth-828, Loki from the end of time, and the original X-Men from Fox's films all collide with the heroes who came out of Endgame.
You don't need all of it. Below are the entries Doomsday follows on from directly, then the full path of everything those depend on in turn, and finally the extras that are worth it but skippable. This is the same required ancestry the timeline lights up when you select Doomsday.
Short on time: the direct lead-ins
- X-Men: Days of Future PastX-Men · 2014 · 2 h 11 min — Professor X, Magneto, Cyclops, Beast, Nightcrawler and Mystique return in the original-trilogy versions last seen together in Days of Future Past.
- Avengers: EndgameMCU · 2019 · 3 h 1 min — The first Avengers team-up since Endgame, bringing back Steve Rogers and Thor alongside the heroes who inherited their mantles.
- Loki S2MCU · 2023 · 5 h 7 min — Loki, last seen holding the multiverse together at the heart of the TVA, returns as that multiverse collapses.
- Thunderbolts*MCU · 2025 · 2 h 7 min — Set fourteen months after Thunderbolts*; Yelena, Bucky, Walker, Ghost, Red Guardian and Bob return as the New Avengers.
- The Fantastic Four: First StepsMCU · 2025 · 1 h 55 min — The Earth-828 Fantastic Four cross into the mainline MCU, following First Steps' mid-credits tease of Doctor Doom.
The full required path, in release order
Everything Doomsday needs, and everything those need in turn. Only story dependencies count: a returning cameo is not a reason to watch a film.
- X-MenX-Men · 2000 · 1 h 44 min
- X2: X-Men UnitedX-Men · 2003 · 2 h 13 min
- X-Men: The Last StandX-Men · 2006 · 1 h 44 min
- Iron ManMCU · 2008 · 2 h 6 min
- The Incredible HulkMCU · 2008 · 1 h 52 min
- Iron Man 2MCU · 2010 · 2 h 4 min
- ThorMCU · 2011 · 1 h 55 min
- X-Men: First ClassX-Men · 2011 · 2 h 12 min
- Captain America: The First AvengerMCU · 2011 · 2 h 4 min
- The AvengersMCU · 2012 · 2 h 23 min
- The WolverineX-Men · 2013 · 2 h 6 min
- Thor: The Dark WorldMCU · 2013 · 1 h 52 min
- Captain America: The Winter SoldierMCU · 2014 · 2 h 16 min
- X-Men: Days of Future PastX-Men · 2014 · 2 h 11 min
- Guardians of the GalaxyMCU · 2014 · 2 h 2 min
- Avengers: Age of UltronMCU · 2015 · 2 h 21 min
- Ant-ManMCU · 2015 · 1 h 57 min
- Captain America: Civil WarMCU · 2016 · 2 h 27 min
- Doctor StrangeMCU · 2016 · 1 h 55 min
- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2MCU · 2017 · 2 h 16 min
- Spider-Man: HomecomingMCU · 2017 · 2 h 13 min
- Thor: RagnarokMCU · 2017 · 2 h 10 min
- Black PantherMCU · 2018 · 2 h 14 min
- Avengers: Infinity WarMCU · 2018 · 2 h 29 min
- Ant-Man and the WaspMCU · 2018 · 1 h 58 min
- Avengers: EndgameMCU · 2019 · 3 h 1 min
- The Falcon and the Winter SoldierMCU · 2021 · 5 h 16 min
- Loki S1MCU · 2021 · 4 h 51 min
- Black WidowMCU · 2021 · 2 h 14 min
- Loki S2MCU · 2023 · 5 h 7 min
- Thunderbolts*MCU · 2025 · 2 h 7 min
- The Fantastic Four: First StepsMCU · 2025 · 1 h 55 min
Worth it, not required
- Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten RingsMCU · 2021 · 2 h 12 min — Shang-Chi's first appearance since his own film.
- Black Panther: Wakanda ForeverMCU · 2022 · 2 h 41 min — Shuri returns as Black Panther, alongside M'Baku, Namor and Namora.
- Ant-Man and the Wasp: QuantumaniaMCU · 2023 · 2 h 4 min — Scott and Cassie Lang return after Quantumania.
- Deadpool & WolverineMCU · 2024 · 2 h 7 min — Channing Tatum's Gambit, rescued from the Void in Deadpool & Wolverine, joins the fight.
- Captain America: Brave New WorldMCU · 2025 · 1 h 58 min — Sam Wilson arrives as the established Captain America, with Joaquin Torres as the new Falcon.