Russo Bros. Correct Avengers: Doomsday Spoiler By Magneto’s Ian McKellen

5 days ago 15

Published Apr 18, 2026, 11:42 AM EDT

An avid comic book fan since she first read "Stan Lee's Soapbox," Allison Hambrick is your friendly neighborhood generalist writer. Journalism, editing, media production, copywriting—she does it all. From her very first blog post about Smallville as a primary schooler, Allison developed a passion for superheroes and the entertainment industry at large.

Majoring in writing and film at SCAD, Allison put her skills to work writing, editing, podcasting, and more. Currently, she moonlights as an editor at the ASHRAE Journal by day and Screen Rant by night. Allison also previously worked for Warner Bros. Entertainment and for Disney.

Through her writing, she hopes to inspire, to entertain, and to empower others to be the best versions of themselves, and her mission in life is to make Stan proud. In her free time, she enjoys reading, video game design, traveling, and spending time outside with her dogs, Loki and Elphaba. Allison is fluent in movie quotes, and her favorite film is Superman II.

Ian McKellen's iconic Magneto is joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe, allegedly bringing major destruction in his wake.

Last year, Marvel Studios shocked its fan base with a major, multi-hour cast announcement that revealed multiple actors from the early 200s X-Men film series would be reprising their roles. In addition to McKellen, Doomsday will bring back Patrick Stewart, James Marsden, Rebecca Romijn, Kelsey Grammer, and Alan Cumming.

Back in January, the veteran X-Men star seemingly dropped a major spoiler when he said he "destroyed New Jersey the other day" while filming. Though he backtracked and admitted he "probably shouldn't have said that," McKellen's statements ignited a new wave of speculation regarding the plot and setting of Doomsday.

Recently, however, the Russos set the record straight when speaking with Entertainment Weekly. Joe Russo explained: "I think he might've misspoke... I don't think he destroys New Jersey." In response, Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige chimed in that "there's a New Jersey presence" in the film.

Aside from clarifying the rumors surrounding McKellen and the other returning X-Men team members, Feige addressed the excitement and anxiety of bringing together such beloved characters onscreen. "I was a part of the first couple many, many, many, many, many years ago," Feige added.

Wanting to meet the audience expectations of "generations of people" who love Marvel heroes, the executive continued: "Now that they're back home, we thought: We have to utilize them. Deadpool & Wolverine was our first opportunity to do that and touch upon it, and it just felt like an amazing opportunity to pit multiple universes against each other, but you care about all of them."

Through trusting the Russo Brothers with bringing these different Marvel Universes together, Feige said that choosing to adapt "a very famous comic run" that features multiple Earths, universes, and timelines together was intentional to meet that opportunity. He concluded: "In movie speak, what that allows us to do is get different casts from different franchises."

Avengers: Doomsday releases in theaters on December 18, 2026.