Marvel's 2025 Year in Review: From Doomsday Chairs to Fantastic First Steps

Marvel looks back at 2025's biggest moments across movies, TV, comics, and games. Highlights include the Avengers: Doomsday cast announcement, Captain America: Brave New World, Daredevil: Born Again, Thunderbolts*, The Fantastic Four: First Steps, and Marvel Rivals' explosive first year.

What a year it was for the Marvel Universe. With three theatrical blockbusters, five Disney+ series, hundreds of comic issues, and a gaming lineup that dominated conversations, 2025 delivered something extraordinary for every kind of Marvel fan.

The Doomsday Countdown Begins

Who knew a bunch of chairs could break the internet? Marvel Studios kicked off production on Avengers: Doomsday with a global livestream that stretched over five hours, slowly revealing 27 cast members' names on black director's chairs. The event racked up 275 million digital views and 3.1 million social mentions. The film arrives December 18, 2026.

Comics: Doom's Year and Cosmic Wars

Doctor Doom dominated Marvel Comics in 2025. After seizing the Sorcerer Supreme title from Doctor Strange, Doom took over the world in One World Under Doom by Ryan North and R.B. Silva. Meanwhile, Jonathan Hickman's Imperial reshaped the cosmos with an all-out intergalactic war, and Marvel crossed over with Godzilla, Alien, Predator, Gargoyles, and even DC in Deadpool vs. Batman.

'One World Under Doom' (2025) #1 cover by Ben Harvey

Blockbuster Movies

Captain America: Brave New World saw Sam Wilson soar as the new Captain America opposite Harrison Ford's Thaddeus Ross. Thunderbolts* assembled the MCU's most dysfunctional anti-heroes — with the asterisk revealed as *The New Avengers. And The Fantastic Four: First Steps introduced Marvel's First Family to the MCU on retro-futuristic Earth-828, with Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Joseph Quinn facing down Galactus.

Anthony Mackie and Harrison Ford in 'Captain America: Brave New World'

Charlie Cox as the Man Without Fear in 'Daredevil: Born Again'

David Harbour, Hannah John-Kamen, Sebastian Stan, Florence Pugh, and Wyatt Russell in 'Thunderbolts*'

Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Joseph Quinn as the Fantastic Four

Zombie Captain America in Marvel Animation's 'Marvel Zombies'

TV and Animation

Daredevil: Born Again brought Charlie Cox and Vincent D'Onofrio back to Hell's Kitchen for a brutal battle for New York City. Ironheart mixed science and magic with Dominique Thorne's Riri Williams. And Marvel Animation launched three distinct series: Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, Eyes of Wakanda, and Marvel Zombies.

Games and Beyond

Marvel Rivals celebrated an explosive first year with five seasonal updates, a Marvel Zombies in-game event, and Gambit and Rogue's wedding. New titles included Marvel Mystic Mayhem, Marvel's Deadpool VR, and Marvel Cosmic Invasion. Looking ahead, Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls and Marvel's Wolverine by Insomniac Games are set for 2026.

'Amazing Spider-Man' (2025) #13 cover by Pepe Larraz

'X-Men: Age of Revelation' (2025) #0 cover by Ryan Stegman

Dominique Thorne as Riri Williams in 'Ironheart'

Marvel Television also took over NYCC 2025 with first trailers for Wonder Man and the surprise announcement of VisionQuest. In comics, the Ultimate Universe races toward its conclusion in Ultimate Endgame, while Spider-Man: Brand New Day entered production with Tom Holland returning to the big screen.

'Jeff Week Infinity Comic' (2025) #1 cover by Gurihiru

Krysten Ritter and Charlie Cox at New York Comic Con 2025

'Ultimate Endgame' (2025) #1 cover by Mark Brooks

'Marvel's Wolverine' arrives on PlayStation 5 in Fall 2026

2025 proved Marvel is firing on all cylinders — and 2026 is shaping up to be even bigger.