To prepare for Avengers: Doomsday, start with Infinity War and Endgame, follow the multiverse through Loki and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, and meet the recent teams in Thunderbolts* and The Fantastic Four: First Steps. Add X-Men and X2 if the original movie mutants are unfamiliar.
You do not need to watch all of Marvel. These are editorial routes organized around characters and concepts, not a promise that every scene will receive a sequel. Choose the route that fills gaps in what you already know.
Spoiler note: this guide mentions broad developments from earlier films and shows. It does not reveal events from Doomsday.
If you only have time for three movies
If you already know the Infinity Saga’s ending and want to meet the newer teams, watch these in order:
- Captain America: Brave New World (2025): Sam Wilson’s own Captain America movie.
- Thunderbolts* (2025): Yelena, Bucky, and the film’s group of antiheroes.
- The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025): Reed, Sue, Johnny, and Ben in their retrofuturistic reality.
This is a catch-up route, not a complete introduction from scratch. If you have never seen Infinity War and Endgame, prioritize those before choosing this option. Otherwise you will be learning the earlier era’s conclusion and the new era’s setup at the same time.
The main route: Avengers, the multiverse, and new teams
1. Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
The confrontation with Thanos leads into Endgame and establishes the losses weighing on the Avengers. Jumping directly to the sequel may tell you the outcome, but misses why the stakes matter to individual characters.
2. Avengers: Endgame (2019)
Endgame is the foundation for understanding Tony Stark, Steve Rogers, and the surviving heroes after the Infinity Saga. Its time-travel story also provides the starting point for the Loki series.
A film can prepare relationships and concepts without featuring the next villain. Doom does not have to appear in the original 2019 version for Endgame to matter.
3. Loki, seasons 1 and 2 (2021 and 2023)
The show develops the Time Variance Authority, variants, and branching timelines. Both seasons matter to this Loki’s development: watching only the finale gives you an outcome without the choices that lead to it.
Much of the series operates outside an ordinary calendar. For a first viewing, place it after Endgame rather than trying to assign every scene a year in a single timeline.
4. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)
This is the most direct film introduction to incursions in the MCU’s vocabulary and the dangers of interference between universes. Do not assume every rule matches Secret Wars in the comics.
If Wanda Maximoff’s situation is unfamiliar, add WandaVision first for emotional context. We treat it as an expansion so a focused preparation guide does not become an obligation to watch everything.
5. Captain America: Brave New World (2025)
Watch this for Sam’s place in the current cinematic era. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier provides the earlier development of his decision to carry the shield.
The recommendation concerns character context. It is not a claim that every political conflict in Brave New World becomes central to Doomsday.
6. Thunderbolts* (2025)
This introduces the group as a group and helps distinguish it from the original Avengers. Several performers in it are part of the announced Doomsday cast. Finish the film before researching its title and credits connections if you want to preserve its surprises.
Black Widow adds Yelena’s history with Natasha. The Captain America films and the series with Sam provide more of Bucky’s story.
7. The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025)
This is the entry point for Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach’s team. Their family dynamic and their movie’s reality are more relevant preparation than treating the 2005 or 2015 adaptations as their origin.
Kevin Feige told Marvel that First Steps leads into Doomsday and discussed the team interacting with other groups. That official connection justifies prioritizing it without inventing what each hero will do next.
Add these for the X-Men and other characters
| Title | Useful context | When to add it |
|---|---|---|
| X-Men (2000) | Xavier, Magneto, and the original movie team | If the classic mutants are new to you |
| X2 (2003) | The team’s development and Alan Cumming’s Nightcrawler | After X-Men |
| X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014) | The Fox series’ changing continuity | After meeting its two generations |
| Deadpool & Wolverine (2024) | Another approach to the TVA and character variants | Once variants are a familiar concept |
| Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021) | Simu Liu’s hero | For individual character introductions |
| Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022) | Shuri, M’Baku, Namor, Wakanda, and Talokan | For the two nations’ context |
| Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) | Steve Rogers and Peggy Carter | If starting fresh with Steve |
| The Avengers (2012) | The original team and its relationships | Before Infinity War if you need that foundation |
A returning actor does not prove that every earlier version shares a single biography. The Fox movies contain continuity changes. The multiverse should not be used as a shortcut for claiming all their events fit together without contradictions.
Likewise, appearing in a recommended film does not confirm a Doomsday cameo. A watchlist supplies context; an announced cast list answers a separate question.
Release order or chronological order?
For this project, use blocks that build understanding: the Avengers finale, the multiverse, and the newer teams. This is not a complete chronological MCU timeline.
Within a story, preserve the intended sequence. Watch Infinity War before Endgame and Loki season 1 before season 2. The X-Men can be a separate block rather than being intercut year by year with MCU films.
If you remember a movie clearly, there is no need to repeat it merely to complete a list. Spend that time on an actual gap: who Sam is, what a variant means, or how the Fantastic Four relate to one another.
Where Endgame: Encore fits
The 2026 Endgame: Encore rerelease should be distinguished from the original 2019 theatrical version. Reports about additional material should not automatically be attributed to whichever cut a streaming service offers.
Check which edition a guide is describing before searching for a particular bonus scene. We do not assume your region’s streaming catalog includes rerelease extras. The original remains the foundation for the Infinity Saga’s conclusion.
Disney+ recommendations and this guide
Disney+ has published a Countdown to Doomsday selection organized around heroes, mutants, the multiverse, and newer teams. It also makes clear that watching all of Marvel is unnecessary.
Our routes prioritize what a viewer needs to understand. They are not a reproduction of an official list or a guarantee that every character in those titles appears in Doomsday.
Common watch-order questions
Do I need the old Fantastic Four movies?
They are not the origin of the First Steps team. They are worth exploring as other adaptations, but should not take priority over the 2025 movie for this preparation.
Do I need to read Secret Wars first?
No. If you are curious, use our 1984-versus-2015 reading guide. Their plots are not confirmed movie spoilers.
Where can I stream these titles?
Check the legal subscription, rental, and purchase listings in your country. Availability changes by date and territory; this guide does not assume every title is included in one subscription.
Should I watch the credits scenes?
Finish the credits in recent films connecting teams and universes before looking up explanations. A scene may introduce a connection without resolving it.
For the antagonist’s background without more viewing hours, read Doctor Doom’s origin and what Downey’s return means.