Highlights
- Marvel has revealed 15 movies and shows fans should watch before Avengers: Doomsday
- The list spans the MCU, X-Men, Fantastic Four and Marvel’s multiverse storylines
- Avengers: Doomsday arrives in theaters on December 18, 2026
Avengers: Doomsday is shaping up to be one of Marvel’s biggest crossover events yet, bringing together heroes and characters from across multiple universes.
Directed by Anthony and Joe Russo, the Phase 6 movie will unite the Avengers, the New Avengers, the Fantastic Four and the original X-Men as they face Doctor Doom, played by Robert Downey Jr.
With decades of Marvel stories feeding into the upcoming blockbuster, fans may want a refresher before heading to theaters. Marvel has now highlighted 15 movies and shows that can help audiences catch up on the characters, worlds and storylines leading into Doomsday.
1. X-Men
The 2000 film launched the modern X-Men movie franchise and introduced audiences to Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine and Patrick Stewart’s Professor X. With the original X-Men cast returning for Doomsday, this is an important starting point.
2. X2
The second X-Men movie deepens the stories of the mutant heroes and expands the world that became one of the most successful superhero franchises outside the MCU.
Its place on Marvel’s watchlist also serves as a reminder that the legacy X-Men characters will have a major role in the upcoming crossover.
3. Captain America: The First Avenger
Steve Rogers’ origin story introduces one of the MCU’s most important heroes and establishes the history behind Captain America.
His legacy continues to shape the MCU long after the events of his first movie, making this an essential rewatch before another massive Avengers team-up.
4. The Avengers
The movie that first brought Marvel’s biggest heroes together remains essential viewing.
Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Hulk, Black Widow and Hawkeye unite for the first time to defend New York from Loki and his invading army, establishing the team dynamic that would eventually lead to the Avengers of today.
5. Avengers: Infinity War
The arrival of Thanos changes everything.
The Avengers and their allies attempt to stop the Mad Titan from collecting the Infinity Stones, leading to one of the MCU’s biggest turning points.
The movie is particularly important for understanding the enormous stakes that eventually lead into Avengers: Endgame.
6. Avengers: Endgame
The conclusion of the Infinity Saga permanently changes the MCU.
From Tony Stark’s sacrifice to Steve Rogers passing on the Captain America legacy, Endgame provides crucial context for the heroes and events that follow.
It also remains an important reminder of just how much Marvel’s current generation has changed since the original Avengers assembled.
7. Loki
Marvel’s Loki series takes the MCU deep into the multiverse.
The show explores alternate timelines, variants and the consequences of manipulating reality, making it one of the most useful watches for anyone trying to understand the increasingly complicated multiverse at the center of Marvel’s current saga.
8. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
Simu Liu’s Shang-Chi enters the MCU with a story that combines martial arts, mythology and the mysterious Ten Rings.
The movie also expands the MCU beyond its established heroes and introduces elements that could become increasingly important as Marvel brings more corners of its universe together.
9. Spider-Man: No Way Home
This is arguably one of the MCU’s clearest examples of the multiverse in action.
Tom Holland’s Spider-Man accidentally opens the door to characters from previous Spider-Man franchises, bringing together different versions of the web-slinger and their villains.
It demonstrates exactly how characters from separate realities can collide.
10. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
Following the death of King T’Challa, Wakanda faces a new threat while the MCU introduces Shuri as the new Black Panther.
The movie also introduces Riri Williams, who later becomes part of the next generation of Marvel heroes.
11. Captain America: Brave New World
Anthony Mackie’s Sam Wilson fully steps into the role of Captain America in this post-Endgame chapter.
With the New Avengers becoming increasingly important to the MCU, Sam’s journey is an important piece of the larger story leading into Doomsday.
12. Deadpool & Wolverine
Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool and Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine finally share the screen in a major multiverse crossover.
The movie also brings characters and elements from the former Fox Marvel universe into the MCU, making it particularly relevant now that the original X-Men are set to join the Doomsday lineup.
13. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
As the title suggests, this movie takes the MCU deeper into alternate realities.
Doctor Strange and America Chavez travel across different universes while confronting dangerous variants and supernatural threats.
For anyone trying to understand how unstable the Marvel multiverse can become, this one is difficult to skip.
14. Thunderbolts
The team once known as the Thunderbolts has taken on a new identity as the New Avengers.
The movie brings together characters including Yelena Belova, Bucky Barnes, John Walker, Ghost, Taskmaster, Red Guardian and Bob, making it one of the most directly connected entries on the list.
The group is expected to play a significant role when the worlds collide in Doomsday.
15. The Fantastic Four: First Steps
This may be the most important recent movie to watch before Avengers: Doomsday.
Set on Earth-828, The Fantastic Four: First Steps introduces Pedro Pascal’s Reed Richards, Vanessa Kirby’s Sue Storm, Ebon Moss-Bachrach’s Ben Grimm and Joseph Quinn’s Johnny Storm.
It also introduces Robert Downey Jr.’s Victor von Doom, the villain at the center of the upcoming Avengers movie.
The Marvel marathon starts here
The 15 titles cover some of the most important characters and storylines feeding into Avengers: Doomsday, from the original X-Men movies to Marvel’s latest multiverse adventures.
With the Avengers, New Avengers, Fantastic Four and original X-Men coming together against Doctor Doom, the upcoming film is set to connect multiple eras of Marvel history.
So if you want to walk into Avengers: Doomsday knowing exactly who is who and why these characters are sharing the screen, this is the watchlist to start with.
Avengers: Doomsday is scheduled to hit theaters on December 18, 2026.
Actor Tom Cruise kisses his wife Nicole Kidman at the Sydney premiere of "Mission Impossible 2" May 30, 2000 at Fox Studios in Australia. Cruise and Kidman, one of the Hollywood's best-known couples, announced February 5, 2001 that they are separating after more than a decade of marriage. Getty Images
Nicole Kidman attends Paramount+'s "Lioness" Season 3 New York Premiere at SVA Theater on July 29, 2026 in New York City.Getty Images
