In Thunderbolts*'s post-credits scene, the New Avengers discover that an unidentified spaceship is rocketing towards Earth. As they take a closer look, we see that a familiar "4" logo is emblazoned on the side, confirming that, in Avengers: Doomsday, the Fantastic Four somehow travel from Earth-828 to Earth-616.
Much has been said about who could be aboard with Marvel's First Family, with Doctor Doom and Steve Rogers both likely possibilities.
With it made clear that the former Thunderbolts are the ones who make first contact with the Fantastic Four, there's a lot of excitement to see what happens when Reed, Sue, Ben, and Johnny encounter Black Widow, Bucky Barnes, Red Guardian, The Sentry, Ghost, and U.S. Agent.
Appearing at MEGACON Orlando (via @AvengersUpdated), Wyatt Russell, who plays the MCU's John Walker, revealed an improvised joke that he believes has been scrapped from Avengers: Doomsday.
"The Fantastic Four spaceship comes up, then I made the joke, 'What’s the four for?'" he recalled. "I thought it was so funny, and I was cracking myself up. Everyone else was like, 'Oh my god, Wyatt’s an idiot.'"
The Russo Brothers shot Thunderbolts*'s post-credits scene on the set of Avengers: Doomsday, essentially making it a clip, of sorts, from the upcoming blockbuster.
Russell first played John Walker in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, where he was initially introduced as the MCU's new Captain America. He later took the Super Soldier serum and was enlisted by Valentina Allegra de Fontaine after killing one of the Flag Smashers.
Now an Avenger, it will be fascinating to see how that changes John and his dynamic, not just with the Fantastic Four, but with his fellow MCU superheroes.
"There’s an arc I can play over however many series or movies and still make the character interesting," the Monarch: Legacy of Monsters star previously said of his MCU arc. "And that’s what I enjoyed about it. The John Walker I played in Falcon and the Winter Soldier in 2020 is a completely different version than the guy in Thunderbolts*, and I think will be completely different again in Avengers: Doomsday."
Check out our interview with Thunderbolts* director Jake Schreier in the player below.
Avengers: Doomsday officially stars Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Anthony Mackie, Winston Duke, Tom Hiddleston, Sebastian Stan, Letitia Wright, Paul Rudd, and Robert Downey Jr. Wyatt Russell, Simu Liu, Tenoch Huerta Mejia, Mabel Cadena, Florence Pugh, Danny Ramirez, David Harbour, Hannah John-Kamen, Lewis Pullman, and India Rose Hemsworth all make their Avengers franchise debuts.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps leads Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Joseph Quinn join them, as do X-Men franchise stars Kelsey Grammer, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Alan Cumming, Rebecca Romijn, James Marsden, with Deadpool & Wolverine star Channing Tatum. The trades have pointed to Ryan Reynolds and Hayley Atwell also appearing in Avengers: Doomsday.
The Russo Brothers direct Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars from a screenplay by Stephen McFeely, with whom they previously collaborated on the Avengers and Captain America franchises. Loki and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness's Michael Waldron has also been enlisted to help.
Avengers: Doomsday is set to be released on December 18, with Avengers: Secret Wars scheduled to arrive on December 17, 2027.