Avengers: Doomsday cast illustration gives first official look at the lineup facing Doom, but there are multiple major absences

After months of secrecy surrounding Avengers: Doomsday, Marvel Studios has revealed the first full look at the movie's lineup in costume – but we can't help but focus on those who aren't included in the debut artwork.

As revealed at Shanghai Expo, the illustration shows a masked Doctor Doom front and center, flanked by Chris Evans' Steve Rogers and Pedro Pascal's Reed Richards. Below, are the legacy X-Men characters set to appear in Avengers: Doomsday, while the rest is segmented into various groups – including the Fantastic Four, the New Avengers, Wakandans, as well as a scattering of OG Avengers like Thor and Ant-Man. You can see it for yourself below.

Former Marvel Studios director of visual development Andy Park – who left in April after a round of Disney layoffs – tweeted, "AVENGERS: DOOMSDAY - the final full film I had the honor of leading as Director of Visual Development at Marvel Studios. This illustration commemorates that journey & reveals the characters & their looks for the first time."

Despite that, there are several notable absentees. Doctor Strange, Spider-Man, Captain Marvel, Deadpool, and Wolverine have each been major parts of the MCU, but seemingly won't factor into Avengers: Doomsday if this art is any indication.

The actors behind those heroes also weren't part of the Doomsday cast reveal last March, so we have to hope Kevin Feige is hiding more secrets and spoilers under his baseball cap before December.

Confusion reigned last year with Doctor Strange actor Benedict Cumberbatch spoiling his presence in Doomsday. Just days later, he walked it back. Instead, he "got it wrong" and would be in the 2027 follow-up Avengers: Secret Wars.

Despite that, Nightcrawler actor Alan Cumming, also returning for Avengers: Doomsday, told Deadline, there are "secret names" in each script "because they didn't want to let out that a certain character was coming back." The plot thickens…

Avengers: Doomsday opens in cinemas on December 18.

For more, we have complete guides to the upcoming Marvel movies on the way and the Marvel timeline. If you're still binging your way through the MCU, you'll need to look at how to watch the Marvel movies in order.