'Avengers: Doomsday': Will Doom Be Targeting The Heroes' Children? If So, Why?

Though the film is still a year away, promotion for the long awaited Avengers: Doomsday has begun, with a collection of teasers set to air in cinemas in front of Avatar: Fire and Ash. After spending a week each exclusive to theatres, the first two teasers, highlighting Steve Rogers and Thor, have now been released online.

Thanks to the content of said teasers, along with existing info, some fans have developed a theory as to Dr. Doom's possible goal in Doomsday: he is targeting the heroes' children. Let's look at some of the evidence supporting this theory, and if it is true, what purpose is Doom hoping to achieve?

Screentime for the next generation

So far, we have seen Dr. Doom onscreen, albeit faceless, just once, when he approaches young Franklin Richards, the son of Reed Richards and Sue Storm, in the post-credits scene of Fantastic Four: First Steps. The first two Doomsday teasers also centre around children.

Steve Rogers' teaser ends with him cradling a newborn baby.

The second teaser, which focuses on Thor, we see him praying to his late Father, Odin, for the strength to survive one more battle so he can return home to Love, the daughter whom he adopted at the end of Thor: Love and Thunder. During the brief scenes we see in the teaser of Thor and Love's (played by Chris Hemsworth's real life daughter, India Rose Hemsworth) life together, they seem to be somewhere alone, possibly isolated.

This seems slightly odd given where we left them in Love and Thunder, travelling the universe and helping others. Plus, why hide away when there is a ready and welcoming home base waiting for them in New Asgard. Some fans theorise that the Father-Daughter duo are in hiding because something or someone evil, possibly Dr. Doom, has already been after Love by the time the teaser is taking place, and this is the reason Thor is departing for war once more. From this, plus Steve's new baby, and Doom's scene with Franklin, a theory has formed that Doom is targeting heroes' children. But why? Well..

These are no ordinary kids

The children in question are powerful in various ways. Aside from being the child of a Super Soldier, Steve's baby, like his Father, is a step out of time, born from people of two separate timelines. Franklin was born with the power Cosmic within him, which he used to revive his Mother, Sue Storm, when she fell in battle against Galactus. Love was resurrected via a wish made to Eternity by her biological Father, Gorr, and possesses enhanced strength and abilities as a result.

Many fans have expanded this theory to include Wanda Maximoff's sons, Tommy and Billy. In Agatha All Along, the MCU's version of Billy, whose soul now inhabits the body of William Kaplan, is revealed to have a similar reality-warping power set to his Mother. He ended that series embarking on a quest to find his twin brother, Tommy, whom he had also helped reincarnate into a new body. Tommy, now inhabiting the body of Thomas Shepherd, is set to appear in the upcoming limited series VisionQuest, played by Ruaridh Mollica.

VisionQuest, scheduled to hit Disney Plus in late 2026, will likely be the final project released prior to Doomsday's release date, leading fans to believe that the series may feature a teaser for the film. If Tommy and Billy are being targeted by Doom, this could also be a way for the Scarlet Witch to be drawn back into the fold, possibly adapting a version of Young Avengers: The Children's Crusade.

To Build a Battleworld?

This brings us to another question. If Doom is in fact seeking powerful children, for what purpose does he need them? Well, Avengers: Doomsday is the first part of a story that will be concluded in Avengers: Secret Wars in 2027. Doom's involvement has led most fans to assume the 2027 film will be an adaptation of the 2015 'Secret Wars' comic event. In that story, Doom engineers the creation of 'Battleworld' after the core Marvel universe crumbles. Battleworld is created partially by Franklin Richards, who then repairs the real universe at the conclusion of the story.

The MCU's version of Franklin is still very young, younger than he was in the 'Secret Wars' comic, and may not have a handle on his powers just yet. Doom may want other characters such as Love and Billy to support and channel Franklin's abilities in the creation of Battleworld. Unfortunately, this means the Avengers will most likely fail to stop Doom in Doomsday, allowing Secret Wars to happen.

We'll likely learn more as we slowly build towards the release of Avengers: Doomsday in December 2026.