The third Avengers: Doomsday teaser trailer appears to have leaked online, and it revolves around the X-Men in a devastating battle.
As we know, Avengers: Doomsday is confirmed to feature a number of X-Men characters played by their original actors, including Kelsey Grammer (Beast), Patrick Stewart (Professor X), Ian McKellen (Magneto), Alan Cumming (Nightcrawler), Rebecca Romijn (Mystique), and James Marsden (Cyclops).
Warning! Potential spoilers for Avengers: Doomsday teaser trailer three follow:
As was with the case for the first Avengers: Doomsday teaser trailer, which confirmed Chris Evans’ Steve Rogers returns, this time as a father, and the second, which confirmed Chris Hemsworth’s Thor alongside his adopted daughter, Love, the third trailer has leaked online in poor quality, with takedowns following soon after.
We see Ian McKellen reprise his role as Magneto, although not in battle costume. Patrick Stewart’s Professor X wears a costume that bears a resemblance to the militaristic suit he wore in the comics, although his much-loved yellow chair is nowhere to be seen. Overall, it looks like Avengers: Doomsday is looking to the 90s for inspiration for the X-Men’s design, which will no-doubt delight veteran fans of the mutant superhero team and align with the popular animated X-Men series.
It looks like the footage we see in the leaked trailer is set in the X-Mansion, also known as Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters. In one shot, we see Cyclops let rip with an optic blast, and near him is a giant boot, which we presume belongs to a mutant-hunting Sentinel. Like with the Thor trailer, the tone here is dead serious. Magneto talks about death coming for everyone eventually, which is a lovely thought.
This ties into set photos that appeared to tease a huge battle at the X-Mansion. At the time, fans speculated that this battle would feature Robert Downey Jr. controlling Sentinels that attack the X-Men as part of an incursion, and that it would go very badly for the X-Men, potentially even wiping the mutants out. The theory is that this would establish the universe-ending potential of Doctor Doom, in a similar way Avengers: Infinity War kicked off with Thanos beating Hulk so badly Hulk basically went into hiding for the rest of the MCU phase.
But the highlight is a comic book accurate live-action version of Marsden’s Cyclops. This is something fans have been waiting 20 years for, after Fox’s X-Men movies made a point of distancing themselves from the comics by going with black suits. Cyclops tears off his visor and lets rip as the X-Mansion erupts in flame around him. It feels like a hail mary, and now I’m worried Cyclops is going to sacrifice himself to save the rest of the team.
The question is, who makes it out of this battle alive? Will whoever’s left of the X-Men team up with the Avengers and other superheroes confirmed to appear in Doomsday to take on Doctor Doom, or do they spend most of their time fighting each other throughout Doomsday, only putting their differences aside for 2027’s Avengers: Secret Wars? Either way, the X-Mansion looks like it’s toast — again.
If Marvel Studios follows the pattern it established earlier this month, this X-Men trailer will replace the Thor trailer in theaters alongside Avatar: Fire and Ash later this week, and we’ll get the official release of the Thor trailer online. Following that, we’ll no doubt get this X-Men trailer online once its week-long run in theaters ends and is replaced by a supposed fourth teaser trailer, which fans are hoping finally reveals Doctor Doom himself.
Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
