Sam Raimi wants to direct Avengers: Secret Wars, but Marvel hasn't asked him yet

Benedict Cumberbatch as Stephen Strange in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
(Image credit: Marvel Studios)

Sam Raimi has finally addressed longstanding rumors that he could be in the running to direct Avengers: Secret Wars.

"I love 90% of the Marvel heroes that I’ve read in the great Stan Lee Marvel Universe comic books. I would love to work with Marvel again," The Evil Dead director told ScreenGeek at WonderCon when asked about the upcoming Avengers movie. "They haven’t reasonably asked me to. I hope they had a good experience with me. They haven’t asked me yet. I hope they do."

Raimi is no stranger to superhero movies – he previously directed Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, which was released in 2022 and saw Benedict Cumberbatch reprise his role as the titular sorcerer as he went up against the Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen). And, of course, he directed all three Tobey Maguire Spider-Man movies, released between 2002 and 2007. 

The future of the next two Avengers movies is a little uncertain since Marvel Studios parted ways with Jonathan Majors after the Kang actor was found guilty of reckless assault in the third degree and harassment in December 2023. The next movie in the series, currently scheduled for release in 2026, was meant to be titled Avengers: Kang Dynasty, but it's now untitled. Secret Wars is meant to be released a year later. 

Avengers: Secret Wars is set to hit the big screen on May 7, 2027. In the meantime, make sure you're up to date with the MCU with our guide to the story so far in Marvel Phase 5 and a look at what's to come in Marvel Phase 6

Entertainment Writer

I’m an Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, covering everything film and TV-related across the Total Film and SFX sections. I help bring you all the latest news and also the occasional feature too. I’ve previously written for publications like HuffPost and i-D after getting my NCTJ Diploma in Multimedia Journalism.