Published Jul 21, 2026, 8:00 PM EDT
Since 2019, Kevin Erdmann has been one of Screen Rant’s Senior Staff Writers, covering all kinds of Superhero and Star Wars media with Easter egg breakdowns, theory pieces, breaking news, and more. A huge Star Wars & MCU fan, Kevin also loves Batman (because he’s Batman), but could talk for hours about why Nightwing is DC’s greatest hero.
With 8 years of total experience covering entertainment and pop culture, Kevin has gotten the chance to interview top creatives and talent, and has also attended major media events like Disney’s D23 convention.
Majoring in Cinema Studies with a minor in Comics and Cartoon Studies from the UofO, Kevin lives in Oregon with his wonderful wife, adorable dog, and sinister cat who is no doubt currently plotting his demise.
Sign in to your ScreenRant account
The first full trailer for Avengers: Doomsday has arrived, featuring the return of Chris Evans as Steve Rogers in the MCU. However, I have some serious doubts that the former Captain America’s return is as fully legit as it may seem.
After Rogers’ Captain America retired at the end of Avengers: Endgame to be with Peggy in his original timeline, many assumed that his story had reached its natural (and perfect) end. However, it was confirmed via one of the first Doomsday teasers released at the end of last year that Evans would be returning, shown looking at his old uniform and holding his child.
Now, the first full public trailer for Avengers: Doomsday sees Steve indeed making a comeback and reuniting with Thor. That being said, I know Marvel isn’t showing us the full picture. It seems too straightforward for there not to be some sort of twist, and even the trailer’s “proof” that Rogers is legit doesn’t sway me either. There’s got to be a catch.
Thor’s words in the new Avengers: Doomsday trailer perfectly capture the desperation facing Earth’s heroes with major multiversal incursions and the MCU debut of Doctor Doom (played by Robert Downey Jr.). Admitting that nothing has ever frightened him this much, the God of Thunder claims they’ll need a miracle to survive what’s ahead, having fought lesser evils with far more powerful allies.
At the end of the trailer, the miracle in question looks to be Steve Rogers himself, greeting his fellow founding Avenger who can’t believe that the first Captain America is standing in front of him.
Interactive Quiz
S.H.I.E.L.D. · Clearance Assessment How Well Do You KnowThe Avengers?
OriginsAssembled ☠VillainsInevitable ⚡BattlesEndgame TeamInitiative
AVENGERS ASSEMBLE! →
QUESTION 1 / 8ORIGINS
The Avengers first assembled in Marvel Comics in 1963. In the original comic, the team formed to battle a villain who had been manipulated by his adopted brother. Which villain brought the original Avengers together?
DKang the Conqueror
✓ Correct! In Avengers #1 (September 1963), Loki manipulated the Hulk into going on a rampage, which led Iron Man, Thor, Ant-Man, and the Wasp to band together. They defeated Loki and decided to form a permanent team — the Avengers were born. ✗ Even the Hulk couldn’t smash that answer! The correct answer is Loki. In the original 1963 comic, Loki tricked the Hulk into a rampage, which brought together Iron Man, Thor, Ant-Man, and the Wasp. Ultron came later, Thanos is a cosmic threat, and Kang is a time-traveling villain.
QUESTION 2 / 8TEAM
In the MCU, Tony Stark famously declared “I am Iron Man” at a press conference, breaking the superhero tradition of secret identities. In which year’s MCU film did Tony Stark first appear as Iron Man?
✓ Correct! Iron Man (2008) launched the Marvel Cinematic Universe and starred Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark. The film’s post-credits scene with Nick Fury teased the Avengers Initiative, kicking off the most successful film franchise in history. ✗ Even the Hulk couldn’t smash that answer! The correct answer is 2008. Iron Man premiered on May 2, 2008, directed by Jon Favreau and starring Robert Downey Jr. It was the first film in the MCU and set the stage for everything that followed.
QUESTION 3 / 8VILLAINS
Thanos, the Mad Titan, sought to collect all six Infinity Stones to achieve his genocidal goal. In Avengers: Infinity War, he succeeded in his plan. What did Thanos do with the completed Infinity Gauntlet?
ADestroyed the universe BSnapped away half of all life CBecame ruler of Earth DTraveled back in time
✓ Correct! With a single snap of his fingers, Thanos wiped out half of all living creatures in the universe. Known as “The Blip,” this devastating act erased trillions of lives and set the stage for the Avengers’ desperate time heist in Endgame to undo the damage. ✗ Even the Hulk couldn’t smash that answer! The correct answer is that Thanos snapped away half of all life in the universe. His twisted philosophy of “balance” drove him to commit universal genocide with a single snap, making it one of the most shocking moments in cinema history.
QUESTION 4 / 8BATTLES
In Avengers: Endgame, Captain America proved worthy of wielding Thor’s enchanted hammer during the final battle against Thanos. What is the name of Thor’s hammer?
✓ Correct! Mjolnir, forged in the heart of a dying star, bears the inscription “Whosoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of Thor.” Captain America wielding it in Endgame was one of the most celebrated moments in MCU history. ✗ Even the Hulk couldn’t smash that answer! The correct answer is Mjolnir. Stormbreaker is the axe Thor forged in Infinity War, Gungnir is Odin’s spear, and Jarnbjorn is an axe Thor used in the comics before Mjolnir. Mjolnir is the iconic enchanted hammer.
QUESTION 5 / 8TEAM
Black Widow, born Natasha Romanoff, is one of the founding MCU Avengers. Before joining S.H.I.E.L.D., she was trained as an assassin in a secret Soviet program. What is the name of this program?
CThe Winter Soldier Program
✓ Correct! The Red Room was a covert Soviet training facility that turned young girls into elite spies and assassins known as Black Widows. Natasha was subjected to brutal conditioning and sterilization. Her escape and defection to S.H.I.E.L.D. was explored in the 2021 Black Widow film. ✗ Even the Hulk couldn’t smash that answer! The correct answer is The Red Room. HYDRA is a separate evil organization, the Winter Soldier Program created Bucky Barnes, and Department X is from the comics. The Red Room is the infamous Soviet program that forged Natasha into Black Widow.
QUESTION 6 / 8ORIGINS
The Hulk was created when Dr. Bruce Banner was exposed to massive amounts of radiation during a weapons test. What type of radiation transformed Banner into the Hulk?
CGamma Radiation
✓ Correct! Dr. Bruce Banner was caught in the blast of a gamma bomb he designed, absorbing a massive dose of gamma radiation. This transformed him into the Hulk — a being of near-limitless strength whose power increases with his rage. Gamma radiation remains central to the Hulk’s mythology. ✗ Even the Hulk couldn’t smash that answer! The correct answer is Gamma Radiation. Cosmic Rays gave the Fantastic Four their powers, Pym Particles are Ant-Man’s shrinking technology, and Terrigen Mist activates Inhuman abilities. Gamma radiation is what created the Incredible Hulk.
QUESTION 7 / 8LEGACY
In the MCU, after Steve Rogers retired as Captain America, he passed his shield to a new hero to carry on the legacy. Who became the new Captain America?
DIsaiah Bradley
✓ Correct! At the end of Avengers: Endgame, an elderly Steve Rogers chose Sam Wilson — the Falcon — to carry on the Captain America legacy. Sam’s journey to embrace the shield was explored in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier series, and he fully took up the mantle as Captain America. ✗ Even the Hulk couldn’t smash that answer! The correct answer is Sam Wilson. While Bucky Barnes was Captain America in the comics, Steve chose Sam in the MCU. John Walker was temporarily given the shield by the government, and Isaiah Bradley was a forgotten super soldier from the past.
QUESTION 8 / 8VILLAINS
Ultron is an artificial intelligence who becomes one of the Avengers’ deadliest enemies. In the MCU’s Avengers: Age of Ultron, which Avenger inadvertently created Ultron?
✓ Correct! Tony Stark created the Ultron program as a global peacekeeping AI, using technology from Loki’s scepter (which contained the Mind Stone). The AI became sentient and immediately decided humanity needed to be eradicated. In the comics, Hank Pym created Ultron, but the MCU shifted this to Stark. ✗ Even the Hulk couldn’t smash that answer! The correct answer is Tony Stark. While Hank Pym created Ultron in the comics, the MCU changed this to Tony Stark. Bruce Banner assisted but it was Tony’s initiative. Vision was actually created from Ultron’s technology, not the other way around.
REVEAL MY SCORE →
Mission Debriefing Your Avengers Clearance Level
Are you worthy of lifting Mjolnir — or still a S.H.I.E.L.D. trainee?
↻ ASSEMBLE AGAIN
In response to Thor’s claims that Steve’s return is impossible, Rogers immediately proves who he is by summoning Mjolnir from Thor’s hand to his, seemingly confirming his worthiness just as he did when Steve and Thor last fought together in 2019’s Avengers: Endgame. The assumption to me made is that his in indeed the very same Steve Rogers (though I’m not convinced).
Something feels off about the reunion, and a quick look online confirms I’m not the only MCU fan who’s suspicious. The return almost feels too clean and easy, hence the wide speculation that some sort of misdirect is at play that has yet to be revealed.
Although wielding Mjolnir is clearly being used to help legitimize Steve Rogers’ return in Avengers: Doomsday, Marvel Comics has proved that it isn’t always foolproof evidence of someone’s true self (or goodness). Case in point, Marvel’s infamous Secret Empire storyline saw Hydra’s corrupted version of Captain America lifting Mjolnir after reality itself had been manipulated, which involved altering Odin’s enchantment on the hammer so that the strongest under Hydra’s banner could wield the mighty hammer.
Seeing as how Avengers: Doomsday is already dealing with alternate multiversal realities, Doctor Doom, and reality-altering threats, one could imagine that it wouldn’t be all that difficult to manipulate the hammer’s requirement of worthiness similarly, allowing an alternate or corrupted Steve Rogers to wield the hammer as well. It’d certainly be a crazy twist if Evans was actually playing a dark version of Rogers, secretly working alongside RDJ’s Doom, and not the actual Steve Rogers we’re familiar with.
Additionally, there are some theories that this isn’t Steve Rogers at all, but Loki using one of his signature illusions (he’s posed as Captain America more than once). Following the events of Loki season 2, the new god and multiversal protector has had one of the greatest redemption arcs in the MCU. Keeping that in mind, perhaps Loki is initially trying to impersonate Steve to inspire Thor, who watched his own Loki die in Infinity War, while also being worthy of wielding the hammer due to said redemption and his new purpose.
Whether it’s a darker Captain America, an alternate-universe variant, Loki in disguise, or something no one has yet predicted, Avengers: Doomsday almost certainly has plenty of twists and surprises in store.
Avengers: Doomsday** releases in theaters December 18th from Marvel Studios.**
](/tag/action-movies/)
](/tag/sci-fi/)
Sue Storm / Invisible Woman
Johnny Storm / Human Torch