It looks like Marvel might have its director for the next Avengers movie at long last. After losing original helmer Destin Daniel Cretton (Shang-Chi) and then its leading villain when Jonathan Majors was convicted of assault, Avengers 5 could finally be back on track thanks to the hiring of Deadpool & Wolverine‘s own Shawn Levy in the director’s seat.
Deadline is reporting that Marvel is “courting” Levy to take on directing duties for the film formerly known as Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, with the filmmaker given the latest draft of the script from Loki scribe Michael Waldron. However, it’s noted that Levy has yet to commit to whether he wants to do it or not. And who can blame him! He has some big shoes to slip into with taking the baton from the Russo brothers, who made Avengers: Endgame the one-time biggest movie ever made.
Not that Avengers 5 is at risk of being a small chamber piece. Deadline also stresses that sources say “over 60 MCU characters” are in the running to reprise their roles in the film. And, by the sounds of it, this doesn’t just mean a lot of cameos either as it’s stated that, with the OG Avengers gone, Avengers 5 will be much “more of an ensemble feature” and less focused on one or two specific heroes.
Our next question? Exactly which 60 MCU characters are we talking about here? Well, let’s see if we can work that out…
Every MCU character who could return for Shawn Levy’s Avengers 5
1-6: Deadline specifically names six actors likely to return – Mark Ruffalo (Hulk), Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Benedict Cumberbatch (Strange), Tom Hiddleston (Loki), Simu Liu (Shang-Chi), and Karen Gillan (Nebula).
7-13: The new leading stars of the Multiverse Saga’s Phases Four and Five will likely make appearances, so that includes Tom Holland (Spider-Man), Anthony Mackie (Captain America), Brie Larson (Captain Marvel), Paul Rudd (Ant-Man), Mahershala Ali (Blade) and Levy’s old pals Ryan Reynolds (Deadpool) and Hugh Jackman (Wolverine).
14-21: Let’s not forget the Disney Plus heroes either; Elizabeth Olsen (Scarlet Witch), Paul Bettany (White Vision) Oscar Isaac (Moon Knight), Tatiana Maslany (She-Hulk), Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Wonder Man), Dominique Thorne (Ironheart), Jeremy Renner (Hawkeye), and Charlie Cox (Daredevil).
22-28: The Thunderbolts* team – Florence Pugh (Yelena Belova), Sebastian Stan (Bucky), David Harbour (Red Guardian), Olga Kuryenko (Taskmaster), Hannah John-Kamen (Ghost), Wyatt Russell (U.S. Agent), and Lewis Pullman (Sentry)
29-34: The Young Avengers – Iman Vellani (Ms. Marvel), Hailee Steinfeld (Kate Bishop), Kathryn Newton (Cassie Lang), Joe Locke (Wiccan), Xochitl Gomez (America Chavez) and TBD (Speed)
35-38: The surviving Guardians – Chris Pratt (Star-Lord), Bradley Cooper (Rocket), Vin Diesel (Groot), and Will Poulter (Adam Warlock).
39-43: The Fantastic Four (possibly) – Pedro Pascal (Mr. Fantastic), Vanessa Kirby (Sue Storm), Joseph Quinn (Human Torch), Ebon Moss-Bachrach (Thing), and Julia Garner (Silver Surfer).
44-50: The Eternals – Gemma Chan (Sersi), Kumail Nanjiani (Kingo), Angelina Jolie (Thena), Brian Tyree Henry (Phastos), Lauren Ridloff (Makkari), Barry Keoghan (Druig), and Harry Styles (Eros).
51-62: Assorted Avengers, Defenders, and anti-heroes – Don Cheadle (War Machine), Teyonah Parris (Monica Rambeau), Samuel L. Jackson (Nick Fury), Danai Gurira (Okoye), Tessa Thompson (Valkyrie), Benedict Wong (Wong), Kathryn Hahn (Agatha), Hayley Atwell (Captain Carter), Jon Bernthal (Punisher), Tenoch Huerta (Namor), Brett Goldstein (Hercules), and Harrison Ford (Red Hulk).
Avengers 5 is scheduled to blast into theaters on May 1, 2026.
