Disney Execs “Pleased” With AVENGERS: DOOMSDAY as It Eyes 2026 Box Office Domination

There’s a lot riding on Marvel Studios right now, and according to a new industry report, Disney likes what it’s seeing from Avengers: Doomsday.

With the film set to hit theaters this December, studio insiders are reportedly feeling good about its prospects, and rival studio heads are already predicting it’ll be 2026’s biggest movie.

The update comes from a wide-ranging report about Disney’s incoming CEO Josh D’Amaro, who is preparing to take the reins from Bob Iger. The piece dives into the current state of Marvel Studios and Lucasfilm, both of which have had a few rocky years navigating shifting audience expectations and streaming overload.

Superhero movies aren’t the automatic slam dunks they used to be. Between theatrical releases and a flood of Disney+ series, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has felt stretched thin to some fans. Still, it sounds like Disney isn’t panicking.

As Variety explains, “Some pundits argue the future of the superhero franchise may ride on the hotly anticipated Avengers: Doomsday, although sources inside the company’s film division believe the health of the MCU does not hinge on an individual title. Executives are pleased with what they’ve seen for the December release.”

If executives are genuinely happy with the footage from Avengers: Doomsday, that suggests Marvel may have something special cooking, but studio executive have a long history of misreading things, and many of them don’t know what a good movie is.

Regardless, the movie will make a ton of money because it’s a big tent-pole Avengers film, and even if the movie isn’t that great, people will still show up to watch it.

There have been reports that the movie shot scenes without a finalized script, which was confirmed by Kevin Fiege. Longtime MCU fans know that isn’t exactly new territory for Marvel Studios, but it still raises concern whenever it comes up.

Over at Lucasfilm, things are a little more complicated. The report notes that “there are concerns” about The Mandalorian and Grogu and its unconventional Super Bowl TV spot.

The promo aired during the Big Game but didn’t deliver the kind of impact Disney’s marketing team was reportedly hoping for. Fans were hungry for a full trailer, and while one did arrive later, the prime opportunity to dominate that massive audience had already slipped by.

We’ve seen Marvel struggle when it comes to transitioning Disney+ characters onto the big screen, so it’ll be interesting to see how Star Wars handles the jump with The Mandalorian and Grogu. It’s too early to know if it’ll reignite the theatrical magic Star Wars once commanded.

There is, however, growing optimism about another galaxy far, far away project. “There’s a sense that Star Wars: Starfighter, a spinoff from Deadpool & Wolverine director Shawn Levy, is more likely to satisfy fans when it hits theaters next spring, with sources who have seen footage praising Ryan Gosling’s performance and suggesting Levy has recaptured the franchise’s spirit of fun.”

Star Wars: Starfighter bringing in Ryan Gosling under the direction of Shawn Levy sounds like a creative swing that could pay off in a big way if it delivers that classic Star Wars energy fans crave.

And then there’s Pandora. The future of Avatar is also under the microscope. Despite Avatar: Fire and Ash pulling in over $1.4 billion worldwide, it didn’t reach the stratospheric heights of its predecessors, both of which crossed the $2 billion mark.

That puts Disney in an rough position. Filmmaker James Cameron has an ambitious long-term plan for the franchise, but the costs are enormous.

As one insider bluntly put it, “If you make $1 billion on the next movie, you still lose hundreds of millions...” That’s the kind of math that keeps executives up at night.

So here we are. Marvel is gearing up for a make-or-break moment with Avengers: Doomsday, Star Wars is recalibrating its theatrical strategy, and Avatar sits at a financial crossroads. With Josh D’Amaro preparing to guide Disney into its next chapter, the pressure is real.

For now, though, it sounds like Disney believes it has a potential juggernaut on its hands with Avengers: Doomsday.