Avengers: Doomsday will feature the return of many familiar Marvel faces, but also some characters from before the MCU even existed. The fifth Avengers movie is primed to be the biggest yet, with over two dozen actors from all corners of the Marvel Multiverse preparing to face Robert Downey Jr.'s Doctor Doom. While the MCU was effectively a refresh for all Marvel superhero films when it began in 2008, the Multiverse Saga has allowed for legacy, pre-MCU actors to reprise their roles.
This will be especially relevant in Avengers: Doomsday, with the film's Multiverse-related plot opening the door even wider for even more legacy Marvel stars to return, several of whom have already been confirmed for a place in the 2026 film.
Avengers: Doomsday is scheduled to release on December 18, 2026, with the Russo Brothers back in the directing chair. The Phase 6 film is the first of a two-part Avengers release, with Avengers: Secret Wars scheduled for release a year later on December 17, 2027.
These Legacy Marvel Actors Are Reprising Their Roles in Avengers: Doomsday
Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man
Fans were overjoyed to see original Spider-Man movie star Tobey Maguire put on the webbed suit again for Spider-Man: No Way Home. Maguire's return was one of the first instances of a legacy Marvel actor being integrated into the MCU's Multiverse, and Marvel Studios seems to have big plans for the actor.
Recent reports suggest that Maguire has been quietly cast in Avengers: Doomsday, meaning he may be the only Spider-Man to appear in the fifth Avengers film, seeing as Tom Holland's MCU Peter Parker isn't expected to return for this one.
It's unclear how significant a role Maguire will play, but with Avengers: Doomsday dealing with the Marvel Multiverse, it makes sense for the studio to bring the actor's version of Spider-Man back.
Magneto
After playing Magneto in the original X-Men trilogy and returning for X-Men: Days of Future Past, Ian McKellen has the chance to put on the helmet one more time in Avengers: Doomsday. McKellan and several of his X-Men co-stars were confirmed in the initial Avengers: Doomsday cast announcement, suggesting the mutants will have an important role to play in major crossover film.
Professor X
Patrick Stewart had already reprised his X-Men role as Professor X once before in the MCU, appearing in a brief cameo as a member of the Illuminati in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Things didn't end too well for that variant of Professor X, but Stewart will have another shot at it in Avengers: Doomsday, as he was announced as joining his fellow Fox X-Men cast members during Marvel's official livestream.
Cyclops
After starring as Cyclops in the original X-Men trilogy, James Marsden joined his co-stars in returning for X-Men: Days of Future Past and will now join them again in Avengers: Doomsday. This marks Marsden's first foray into the MCU after a 12-year gap, and fans are excited to see his version of Scott Summers return ahead of a possible recast.
Beast
Kelsey Grammer's mutant genius Beast has been one of the key connections to the legacy X-Men stars and the MCU. Appearing in the post-credits scene of The Marvels, Beast was shown tending to Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris), suggesting that this is the universe he and his X-Men colleagues will be found in when Avengers: Doomsday picks up.
Mystique
Rebecca Romijn's name was confirmed on one of Avengers: Doomsday's cast chairs, setting up her return to the role of Mystique after an almost 22-year gap. The actress played the mutant blue shapeshifter in X-Men and X2, before Jennifer Lawrence overtook the role in the prequel X-Men films.
Romijn will be back donning the blue makeup in Avengers: Doomsday, alongside her X-Men co-stars.
Nightcrawler
The final confirmed legacy Marvel actor in Avengers: Doomsday is Alan Cumming as Nightcrawler. Cumming's sole X-Men appearance was in X2, where he played the teleporting blue mutant. Kodi Smit-McPhee played Nightcrawler's younger version in the X-Men prequel films.
Cumming has been spotted alongside his Avengers: Doomsday cast mates during the movie's filming period, and it will be a much-awaited reunion to see them all on-screen together as their superhero characters in 2026.
