Florence Pugh's Yelena Belova Will Reportedly Be Switching Up Teams in AVENGERS: DOOMSDAY
It looks like the MCU’s future might be even messier and more exciting than expected. A new rumor suggests Avengers: Doomsday is shaking up the roster in an unexpected way, especially for Florence Pugh’s Yelena Belova.
After Thunderbolts*, Yelena steps into her sister Natasha Romanoff’s shoes and tries her hand at becoming a legit superhero. That journey lands her in a leadership role with the government-sanctioned New Avengers, alongside Bucky Barnes.
But even though they’re branded as the “official” Avengers, the public isn’t exactly rolling out the red carpet. And things are further complicated by Sam Wilson, who reportedly sued the team for using the Avengers name after forming his own squad of heroes in response to former President Thaddeus Ross.
According to scooper Daniel Richtman, Yelena ends up switching sides. "Yelena is actually part of Sam's Avengers team in Doomsday.” There’s no explanation given, just a tease that instantly raises a dozen questions.
If this ends up being true, did she leave the New Avengers team? Did the team break up? Did something happen to the rest of the team leave her no other choice than to team up with Wilson?
We’ll have to wait for more details, but the idea of Yelena aligning with Sam Wilson’s Avengers is interesting and unexpected. With Doomsday reportedly featuring three different Avengers teams with Wilson’s Avengers, the New Avengers, The Fantastic Four, and some X-Men team members, things are sure to get wild.
Florence Pugh, for her part, is all-in on the upcoming madness. When asked if she freaked out after seeing the Avengers: Doomsday cast, she responded with an emphatic, "100%!" She added, "Oh, god, there’s too many people in it [to choose]! Pedro Pascal, obviously, always and forever. Paul Rudd, yes, so funny. Genuinely, the idea that all of those people are going to be in the same movie is nutso sauce."
And where does Pugh see Yelena emotionally after everything? She said: "I hope that she’s happy now. I hope that she feels fulfilled, like she has purpose. And I hope that we get to see some of her light and her charm and her color again, because I loved playing that before."
Marvel Studios’ Avengers: Doomsday hits theaters May 1, 2026.