Anthony Russo says Avengers: Doomsday is still in the edit, and that keeps the X-Men crossover’s runtime unsettled for now. The co-director said the movie is not finished, even as it heads toward a December 18 release with a cast built around major Marvel characters.
“It’s too early to say what the running time is. But it’s substantial,” Russo said at San Diego Comic-Con 2026. He added, “We’re deep in the edit, but we are not finished with the movie.” For a film described as the first Avengers movie in five years, that leaves the final cut open while the studio keeps shaping the scale of the project.
2 hours and 45 minutes
Earlier in the month, the movie was reported to have a working runtime of 2 hours and 45 minutes. That figure sat well below Avengers: Endgame, which currently runs 3 hours and 1 minute and holds the title of longest MCU movie.
Russo’s comments complicate that early number without fully dismissing it. When asked if the film would go over three hours, he answered, “Hopefully we will make you happy.” He also said, “The movie is so complex, it’s so layered, there are so many amazing characters in the film.”
Robert Downey Jr. on the cut
Robert Downey Jr. said he had already seen some cut of the film and called it “absolutely fantastic.” That kind of early reaction is useful, but it does not lock the length in place; editing choices can still trim or expand scenes as the team keeps working through the material.
The cast list helps explain why the runtime remains fluid. The film includes Chris Evans’ Steve Rogers and Chris Hemsworth’s Thor, along with the Thunderbolts, the Fox-era X-Men, the new Fantastic Four, and the Wakandans.
December 18 deadline
The new synopsis says beloved heroes from three distinct universes will face a deadly collision course and an existential threat, and that the film will lay the foundation for the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. That is a crowded brief for a single cut, especially with the movie still being assembled.
For now, the practical read is simple: the reported 2 hours and 45 minutes is still just a working mark, and Russo has left open the possibility that the final version could run longer. The length question gets answered when the edit locks, but the release date on the calendar is already December 18.
