The Russo brothers said "f*** no" to directing Avengers: Secret Wars until "stumbling upon" the perfect idea: "That’s a story we need to tell"

The Russo brothers weren't too keen on returning to direct Avengers: Secret Wars - until they stumbled upon the right idea for the pic.

"Really what happened was, we ended up stumbling upon an idea that activated all of us," Anthony Russo told Empire. "You couldn’t see it coming until it came, and once it came it was like, 'Well, that’s a story we need to tell.'"

The Russo brothers directed Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War, and Avengers: Endgame. The duo has returned to direct both Avengers Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars, with frequent screenwriting collaborators Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely returning to pen the scripts.

The films see Robert Downey Jr. return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as none other than Doctor Doom, the notorious enemy of the Fantastic Four (who also has an utterly unimpressive ride at Universal Studios Islands of Adventure in Orlando, Florida). Doomsday is due out in 2026, with Secret Wars arriving in 2027 - concluding Marvel Phase 6.

"There were ideas that we were trying to wrap our heads around that preceded this one, and we just never found the story," Joe Russo explained. "I remember calling Steve and said, 'Hey, crazy idea. What do you think if we all go back and do Secret Wars? You were like, 'Fuck no. Absolutely not.' And then you hung up. And the next morning at 7.30 you called and were like, 'Alright, I have an idea.'"

Avengers: Secret Wars is set to hit theaters on May 7, 2027. For more, check out our list of the most exciting upcoming movies in 2025 and beyond, or check out our guide to all the upcoming Marvel movies and shows you need to know about.