Seven years later, Marvel Studios will rewrite Avengers: Endgame's history in a major way this December in Doomsday. The studio left fans fulfilled after 11 years of Infinity Saga build-up with a perfect ending that bid farewell to three of the MCU's founding superheroes. While Robert Downey Jr.'s Iron Man and Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow made the ultimate sacrifice to defeat Thanos, Chris Evans' Steve Rogers, aka Captain America, left the MCU like a soldier returning home, returning to the past for a long-awaited dance with Peggy Carter.
According to scooper MyTimeToShineHello on X, Chris Evans' Steve Rogers and Hayley Atwell's Peggy Carter, along with their newly-introduced son, have been living on the MCU Fantastic Four's home universe, Earth-828.
The unexpected reveal brings a major retcon to Endgame's conclusion, which clearly implied that Rogers had ventured back into the 1940s on Earth-616 and lived out his life there before one day, as an old man, passing the Captain America torch over the Anthony Mackie's Sam Wilson on the bench.
The Fantastic Four director Matt Shakman stated last year that there are "really no other superheroes" or Avengers on Earth-828. In a way, Rogers' residing on that world could be said to make Shakman's statement untrue, although not necessarily if the former Captain America is retired from his super heroics.
This may also explain why Marvel Studios hid Steve's post-Endgame whereabouts from even its own creators, as writer Malcolm Spellman once confirmed. While Doomsday wasn't in the MCU's plans until 2023/24, the studio may have always been saving Steve's alternate universe destination as a reveal for Avengers 5.
But that isn't the only way that Evans' comeback will rewrite MCU history, as Endgame left the consensus that the elderly Steve's conversation with Sam Wilson was the first time he had seen his heroic comrades since he ventured into the past, seemingly living out his life in secret on the same Earth.
As fans will soon uncover in Doomsday, Steve eventually reunited with the Avengers to face the imminent Multiversal chaos long before he would offer his legendary shield to Sam. One has to wonder if that will leave him a little surprised or confused to see the former Falcon operating as Captain America, as he won't hand him the shield in his twilight years for decades from his perspective.
This retcon could imply that the version of Hayley Atwell's Peggy Carter who he danced with in Endgame's final moments to "It's Been a Long, Long Time" was a Variant from Earth-828, not the one he actually left waiting for a dance years ago.
Previous reports stated that Doomsday will act as a "direct sequel" to Endgame, and it now seems some minor reveals and retcons regarding the Infinity Saga's conclusion will actually shape its follow-up, over seven years later.
How Avengers: Endgame's Conclusion Will Shape Doomsday
In Avengers: Endgame, Tony Stark delivered a powerful message to Steve Rogers: "You mess with time, it tends to mess back." Funnily enough, it will once again be Robert Downey Jr. who returns to enforce that lesson, this time in Doctor Doom's terrifying green cloak and an axe to grind with the time meddler.
Rogers' new home on Earth-828 finally explains how Evans almost appeared in The Fantastic Four: First Steps' post-credits scene. The scrapped stinger was rumored to see Marvel's First Family and Doctor Doom approach the Avenger to come to Earth-616 to "help them gain the heroes' trust."
Beyond his role as one of Avengers 5's leading heroes, Rogers' actions in Endgame may have caused Doomsday, rewriting his well-deserved happy ending into a selfish decision that may have sacrificed the entire Multiverse.
One of the MCU's many changes to Doctor Doom will be his tragic past, as his wife and child were killed in an accident that left him scarred. If the rumours are to be believed, the Latverian ruler will trace the cause of the event back to the retired Captain America's trip to the past and set out to avenge his family.
It has always seemed confusing how Marvel Studios will trade out Victor von Doom's famous rivalry with Mr. Fantastic for one with a Captain America, but the latest updates may shed some light. While living on Earth-828, it's tough to imagine Rogers left no impact, and thus could have created the timeline branch that led to the Doom family accident, to which Victor will eventually find the root.
