Over a year ago, Marvel Studios brought the internet to a standstill when it delivered a livestream to the world that, in retrospect, probably took some convincing. Across several hours, Marvel revealed the main cast for the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday by showing off the cast’s on-set chairs. Since then, a handful of other characters that are set to appear in the film have been confirmed, such as Chris Evans and Hayley Atwell, with rumors continuing to swirl about even more characters that might appear in the film when it finally premieres this December. Now, another batch of names has made it online, and it honestly makes a lot of sense.
Though fans are still thinking about the rumors of Ryan Reynolds or even another Spider-Man appearing in Avengers: Doomsday, the latest rumor focuses on a specific corner of the MCU. A focal point of the first full trailer for Avengers: Doomsday (and one of the teasers released earlier this year) was Thor’s battle with Doctor Doom and the fact that the god of thunder was, for once, scared and in need of backup. According to scooper James Mack, that backup will come in the form of major Asgardian characters, including Heimdall, the Warriors Three, and Lady Sif.
A tease that these five Thor-centric heroes will return in Avengers: Doomsday is one that may have some fans scratching their heads. Most of these characters have not been in Avengers movies previously, and in fact, a majority of them are dead. Only Jaimie Alexander’s Sif is still alive when looking at the full list, and her last appearance was in 2022’s Thor: Love and Thunder, now living on Earth in New Asgard. As for Idris Elba’s Heimdall, he died at the hands of Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War, with Fandral, Volstagg, and Hogun all perishing thanks to Hela in Thor: Ragnarok.
That said, if there is any hero whose own corner of the MCU is best suited to bringing back dead characters with an easy explanation, it’s Thor. The post-credit scene for Thor: Love and Thunder already set this up, in fact, with Jane Foster dying and entering Valhalla, where she’s met by Heimdall. Warriors returning from the Asgardian afterlife to fight alongside Thor’s side seems like a very easy thing for a Marvel movie to explain, especially with Thor’s prayer that was used as a teaser for Avengers: Doomsday.
Figuring out a way to bring back deceased characters in the MCU is easy, but what will actually be tough for the film is who will fill those roles. Out of the characters set to return, Volstagg actor Ray Stevenson has passed away since his last appearance, meaning that the role will need to be recast if he is going to actually show up. On top of that, Fandral has previously been played by two actors, with Zachary Levi the most recent to take on the role. The former Shazam! star has become somewhat controversial since his last appearance, meaning two of the Warriors Three may have fresh faces in Avengers: Doomsday, if they are even appearing.
