Avengers: Doomsday is fighting an uphill battle. Not only will it have to contend with Dune: Part Three at the box office, but it's also fending off its predecessors, especially Avengers: Endgame. The 2019 movie could've been the MCU's swan song. While people would've been disappointed that their favorite franchise was over, there was no better way for it to go out than by honoring everything that had come before.
The MCU did continue, though, and it stumbled a few times on the road to Doomsday. Originally, Kang filled Thanos' shoes. That didn't pan out, and the powers that be at Marvel Studios had to pivot. The best idea they could come up with was to bring back Robert Downey Jr., not to play Iron Man but to play Doctor Doom.
Having Iron Man's actor in the mix ensures that Doomsday has at least one major connection to Endgame. Chris Evans reprising his role as Steve Rogers makes two. But the whole world knows that they aren't sticking around for the long haul. Both of them have careers outside of the superhero world to get back to.
Since Evans and Downey Jr. are on borrowed time, Marvel Studios is looking to a couple of other performers to help Doomsday feel legitimate. The highly anticipated movie will feature a new Avengers team, and not the one Valentina Allegra de Fontaine is running out of the old Avengers Tower.
Sam Wilson is working to get the old band back together, starting with a couple of Endgame veterans. The Doomsday trailer features a couple of shots of Captain America standing alongside Scott Lang, with whom he has a long history dating back to the first Ant-Man movie. For as long as he's been around, Scott has shown deep admiration for the Captain America title. And things are unlikely to change now that his buddy Sam has it.
One of the other spots on the team belongs to Thor. In the Doomsday trailer, he returns to Earth to warn its mightiest heroes about an impending threat. He doesn't say specifically what it is, but the shots of him fighting Doom give it away. While Thor has always been the most aloof member of the Avengers, consistently running off to space to get into trouble, there's no doubt that he's going to be a team player in his latest appearance.
But three doesn't make a team. Sam will have to put his recruiting hat on and build out a roster that's worthy of the Avengers name. Fortunately, Doomsday is full of characters just waiting for a chance to prove themselves on a bigger stage.
Non-Endgame Heroes Who Could Join Sam Wilson's Avengers Team In Doomsday
Falcon
Steve wouldn't have gotten far without his wingman, Falcon. The duo took down a lot of bad guys together, which made the passing of the mantle rather seamless. But Sam needed his own partner if he hoped to be as effective as Steve. He found a great one in Joaquín Torres, an Air Force intelligence officer who wanted to take to the skies.
At the end of Captain America: Brave New World, the first project in which Torres donned his Falcon suit, Sam asked his friend to join his Avengers team. Doomsday will surely pick up where that movie left off. While Falcon may not be as strong as Thor or as crafty as Ant-Man, he has just as much heart as they do.
Shang-Chi
Unlike most other Marvel heroes, Shang-Chi has yet to leave his corner of the universe. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings saw him face off against his evil father, The Mandarin, and save his mother's home, Ta Lo, from certain destruction. After his first victory as a hero, he was visited by three MCU mainstays: Wong, Captain Marvel, and Bruce Banner, none of whom are confirmed for Doomsday.
Not knowing anyone at the party hasn't stopped Shang-Chi from making an impact. In the Doomsday trailer, he pops up in the X-Mansion and throws down with Gambit. It's hard to imagine him doing that without getting a phone call from Sam prior. Maybe one of Shang-Chi's pals put in a good word for him with the new Captain America.
Loki
The God of Mischief sticks out like a sore thumb on this list because he did appear in Endgame, when he used the Tessaract to escape New York. However, he wasn't a hero at that point. Two seasons on Disney+ changed him from a lovable bad guy to the protector of the multiverse.
Now that all of reality is in danger, Loki will surely have to align himself with those who wish to protect it. Sam is all about looking out for the innocent, so his team is likely to welcome the reformed Asgardian with open arms. And it also doesn't hurt Loki's chances that his brother is around to vouch for him.
