The MCU Trilogies That Will Matter Most in Avengers: Doomsday, Ranked

Marvel has been quietly laying track for a big, weird, multiversal throwdown, and the rumor mill says it points to an Avengers: Doomsday moment where Victor von Doom treats heroes like interchangeable gladiators and playthings for a new reality. Some MCU trilogies are absolutely feeding that machine. Others, not so much. Here is how the recent trilogies line up against the idea of Doom, variants, Battleworld, and a possible new Avengers lineup.

'There was an idea to bring together a group of remarkable people.'

1. Guardians of the Galaxy - beloved, but probably sitting this one out

   Peter Quill has peaced out. Rocket is running the team now, with Adam Warlock finally in the mix. As fun as that new lineup is, it does not scream Doomsday crossover. If Doom is building a Battleworld trophy case of heavy hitters, he could theoretically eyeball Warlock. But that lane looks closed if Sentry, aka the Void, is already on the Thunderbolts board. Translation: odds are low we get another Earth Avengers plus Guardians mash-up like Infinity War and Endgame.

   For the record: Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) was directed by James Gunn, sits at 8/10 on IMDb with a 91% on Rotten Tomatoes. Vol. 2 (2017), also by Gunn, lands at 7.6/10 on IMDb and 7.6/10 on Rotten Tomatoes. Vol. 3 (2023) completes the trilogy at 7.9/10 on IMDb and 82% on Rotten Tomatoes.

2. Captain America - the fractured Avengers vibe is back in play

   We spent years watching Steve Rogers hold the MCU together. Now it is Sam Wilson carrying the shield, and that matters. After Civil War split the team and Endgame never fully put the original six back together, Doomsday feels like the moment a new Avengers lineup finally assembles on screen. Sam leads. Bucky is already angling for the Avengers label. And yes, the Fantastic Four are said to be inbound, with talk that they have already breached Earth’s atmosphere. That is a potent setup for a Doom-era team-up.

   The trilogy stats: The First Avenger (2011), directed by Joe Johnston, 6.9/10 on IMDb and 80% on Rotten Tomatoes. The Winter Soldier (2014), from Anthony and Joe Russo, 7.7/10 on IMDb and 90% on Rotten Tomatoes. Civil War (2016), also the Russos, 7.8/10 on IMDb and 90% on Rotten Tomatoes.

3. Ant-Man - the Quantum Realm could become Doom’s cage

   The Quantum Realm is still a giant plot key. Kang’s throne room might be out of circulation for now, but the realm and its tech remain a ready-made prison. One very plausible play: Doom corrals Avengers and assorted heroes in the Quantum Realm as his slaves. The loophole he does not see coming is Team Ant-Man. Scott’s daughter Cassie is still topside and could MacGyver a rescue device to break everyone out.

   There are also whispers that the Council of Kang gets swapped out for a Council of Doom in Doomsday, with multiple Doom variants showing up, potentially including a female Doom. That is exactly the kind of flex a multiversal tyrant would make.

   Trilogy numbers: Ant-Man (2015), Peyton Reed, 7.2/10 on IMDb and 83% on Rotten Tomatoes. Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018), Reed again, 7/10 on IMDb and 87% on Rotten Tomatoes. Quantumania (2023), Reed 3-for-3, 6/10 on IMDb and 46% on Rotten Tomatoes.

4. Spider-Man - the spell that almost broke everything

   Tom Holland’s Spidey gave us two big multiverse breadcrumbs. Far From Home flirted with the idea through Mysterio’s lies. No Way Home then tore open the sky with Doctor Strange’s botched spell and showed how ugly it gets when multiversal boundaries fail. If Doom pulls timelines like threads, Strange is the one who knows how to stitch them back. And remember: Doom is not just a Latverian monarch in armor. He wields serious magic, which puts the Sorcerer Supreme right in his lane. Rumors even plug Robert Downey Jr. in as a Doom variant, which would be a wild twist if that sticks.

   Trilogy snapshot: Homecoming (2017), Jon Watts, 7.4/10 on IMDb and 92% on Rotten Tomatoes. Far From Home (2019), Watts, 7.3/10 on IMDb and 91% on Rotten Tomatoes. No Way Home (2021), Watts, 8.2/10 on IMDb and 93% on Rotten Tomatoes.

5. Thor - cosmic highways, convergences, and doorways

   Thor’s corner of the MCU has been telegraphing multiversal mechanics from day one. Erik Selvig straight-up called the Bifrost a gate to another dimension in the first Thor. Dark World and Ragnarok pushed cosmic travel. Convergence events are canon. That is the kind of cosmic rulebook a Doomsday plot could crib from to justify how Doom meets the Avengers or corrals them into a Battleworld scenario.

   Trilogy roll call: Thor (2011), Kenneth Branagh, 7.0/10 on IMDb and 77% on Rotten Tomatoes. The Dark World (2013), Alan Taylor, 6.7/10 on IMDb and 67% on Rotten Tomatoes. Ragnarok (2017), Taika Waititi, 7.9/10 on IMDb and 93% on Rotten Tomatoes.

6. Deadpool - the mutants are in, and their universe has a number

   Deadpool & Wolverine did more than crash two fan-favorites into the MCU. It planted a flag: after the Multiverse Saga, the Mutant Saga is next. With Wade Wilson and Logan officially on the MCU chessboard, the earlier Deadpool movies effectively count now, and that opens the door to a lot of familiar faces.

   As laid out, the prime X-characters we know - Kelsey Grammer’s Beast, Patrick Stewart’s Professor X, Ian McKellen’s Magneto, Alan Cumming’s Nightcrawler, Rebecca Romijn’s Mystique, James Marsden’s Cyclops, and yes, the long-teased Channing Tatum Gambit - can all hail from the same continuity as Deadpool: Earth-10005. Deadpool & Wolverine does not dwell on the exact Earth number for Logan, but by the end, Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine is now aligned with Earth-10005 too.

   There is also that blink-and-you-screamed clip: Thor sobbing while holding Wade, seen on a monitor at a fake TVA outpost. It has not actually happened yet in linear time, but it is out there as a future beat. Even if every mutant does not show up for Doomsday, expect Thor to swing a hammer alongside Wade, and do not be shocked if Logan tags in for more weaponized banter and regeneration-fueled mayhem.

   Trilogy stats: Deadpool (2016), Tim Miller, 8/10 on IMDb and 85% on Rotten Tomatoes. Deadpool 2 (2017), David Leitch, 7.6/10 on IMDb and 83% on Rotten Tomatoes. Deadpool & Wolverine (2024), Shawn Levy, 7.5/10 on IMDb and 78% on Rotten Tomatoes. It is also one of the highest-grossing MCU-era releases since the Infinity Saga wrapped, which says a lot about where audience heat is right now.

Bottom line: if Avengers: Doomsday delivers on the whispers - Doom variants, Battleworld, Sam’s Avengers, Fantastic Four in the mix - the pieces are already on the board. Some trilogies teed up the rules, some seeded the tech, and some brought in the reinforcements with claws.

How hyped are you to see this crew collide, and which trilogy thread do you think Doomsday pulls hardest? If you want to revisit the evidence, Marvel Studios entries are streaming on Disney+.