Avengers: Doomsday Shifts Strategy After Spider-Man: Brand New Day Success

MCU Writers Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers Join Avengers Projects

The involvement of writers Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers in the next Avengers films surfaced after director Destin Daniel Cretton revealed during promotional events for Spider-Man: Brand New Day that both writers had temporarily stepped away from that production to work on the upcoming Avengers sequels, according to The Wrap.

When questioned directly by journalists following the disclosure, Erik Sommers confirmed his participation in the films. “We’re thrilled to say we’re involved with Avengers,” Sommers stated to The Wrap, declining to specify the exact scope of their writing contributions.

Sommers noted his ongoing collaboration with Marvel Studios and his established working relationship with directors Joe and Anthony Russo, who are slated to direct both Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars. “We love working with Marvel and have a relationship with the Russos, and it’s a pleasure. It’s a real pleasure,” Sommers told The Wrap.

Balancing Ensemble Casts and Multiverse Stakes

McKenna and Sommers enter the Avengers production pipeline after managing large ensemble dynamics in Spider-Man: No Way Home and Spider-Man: Brand New Day. No Way Home required integrating multiple iterations of Peter Parker, villains from separate cinematic universes, Doctor Strange, and decades of legacy characters while maintaining a central emotional focus on the protagonist.

Similarly, Spider-Man: Brand New Day incorporated major characters such as the Punisher, Hulk, and Jean Grey around Peter Parker. That same narrative balancing act will be required on a much larger scale for Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars, which must handle vast rosters of heroes, villains, and multiversal elements, including Robert Downey Jr. appearing as Doctor Doom.

Initially, the return of directors Joe and Anthony Russo signaled a reunion with Infinity War and Endgame writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, while Michael Waldron, known for Loki and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, was previously linked to Secret Wars.

Reporting on the production process indicates the writing lineup narrowed to Stephen McFeely and Michael Waldron for Doomsday before Marvel Studios brought in McKenna and Sommers. None of the participants have clarified whether their addition involved extensive rewrites of existing drafts, focused script work on specific sequences, or character development.

Box Office Momentum and Future MCU Strategy

The creative shuffle coincides with strong commercial performance for Spider-Man: Brand New Day, which surpassed $1 billion globally during its opening week, according to box office reporting. For Marvel Studios, the film’s reception demonstrated that a story can successfully incorporate numerous shared-universe elements without losing its grounding in character-driven conflict.

As Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars approach production, the central challenge remains establishing genuine emotional stakes beneath the spectacle of a massive crossover event. The inclusion of experienced franchise writers like McKenna and Sommers points to Marvel’s focus on maintaining narrative cohesion as the Multiverse Saga reaches its conclusion.

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