Several Young Avengers cast members are already set up in the Marvel Cinematic Universe with a team for Phase 4 or beyond very much possible. With multiversal threats and unknown villains more dangerous than Thanos just around the corner, new heroes have to step up and fill the gap that Tony Stark, Captain America, and Black Widow left after Avengers Endgame. Thankfully for the universe, a new lineup of MCU young Avengers, aptly called the Young Avengers, may assemble soon in a Young Avengers movie or series.
The Young Avengers were introduced in 2005 as an amateur team of vigilantes who were eager to live up to the legend of the Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. At first, they’re cast aside due to their lack of experience and their troubled past, but they soon prove their worth as capable heroes. With the help of a resurrected Vision and with Iron Lad (the future Kang the Conqueror in the comics) as their founder and leader, the Young Avengers officially begin their career as superheroes.
Although the vast amount of characters the MCU has introduced has made it easy to miss clues about their eventual team-up, most of the Young Avengers cast members have either been introduced already or are set to arrive soon in Phase 4. Some of them have already appeared in previous titles as supporting characters, others have been referenced, and some even have their own Disney+ shows out or on the way. Plans for the MCU’s Phase 4 don’t seem to include any full-fledged ensemble movie for the next few years, but the full MCU Young Avengers movie lineup could be completed sooner rather than later with the following heroes.
Kate Bishop (Hawkeye)
The opening sequence of Avengers Endgame showed Clint Barton training his daughter Lila with a bow and arrow. Despite what her new skills may suggest, it’s actually the unrelated vigilante Kate Bishop who adopts the Hawkeye moniker and joins the Young Avengers. Hailee Steinfeld starred alongside Jeremy Renner in the Hawkeye Disney+ show in 2021, drawing from the acclaimed 2012 Hawkeye comic book run, where Clint Barton takes Kate under his wing and trains her to be the next sharpshooter Avenger. Hawkeye introduced (and re-introduced) plenty of MCU characters in its six-episode run, including Black Widow’s sister Yelena Belova, Daredevil‘s Kingpin, and Maya Lopez, a.k.a. Echo. Kate Bishop could have her hands full in the MCU dealing with all of these loose threads, but she’s also a likely Young Avengers cast member if the MCU Young Avengers movie ends up happening.
Cassie Lang (Stature)
First portrayed by Abby Ryder Fortson, Cassie Lang was a breakout character in Ant-Man. Cassie is Scott Lang’s daughter and the reason he became a superhero in the first place. After Thanos wiped out half of all life in the universe in Avengers: Infinity War, Cassie, now played by Emma Fuhrmann, spent five years without her father, as he got trapped in the Quantum Realm during the post-credits scene of Ant-Man & The Wasp.
When Scott Lang escapes from the Quantum Realm thanks to a very convenient rat, the first thing he tells his grown-up daughter is «Wow, you’re so… big!». This is a nod to the eventual transformation of Cassie Lang into Stature, a size-altering superhero that joins the Young Avengers in the comics after Scott dies. Kathryn Newton is confirmed to take over the role of Cassie Lang in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, where she will likely get a hold of some Pym Particles for the first time. If a Young Avengers movie or Disney+ show arrives in the near future, it’s probable that Stature will already be an established superhero once she joins the team.
Elijah Bradley (Patriot)
Elijah Bradley is one of the founding members of the Young Avengers in the comics. He joins Iron Lad even before getting his own superpowers, which he finally receives after getting a blood transfusion from his grandfather, the super soldier Isaiah Bradley. The MCU introduced Elijah in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, where he met Sam Wilson when the Avenger pressed Isaiah for information about his life story. Elijah Richardson will likely reprise his role as Elijah Bradley in a future Young Avengers movie or TV show, where Eli may gain his abilities the same way he did in the comics. Eli, dubbed «Patriot», could also possess Captain America’s first shield by visiting the Smithsonian, which now honors Isaiah Bradley.
Tommy & Billy (Wiccan & Speed)
Thomas Shepherd and William Kaplan are the twin children of Scarlet Witch and Vision. In the comics, William is a magic-wielding founding member of the Young Avengers cast who goes by the name of Wiccan, while Thomas is a speedster who gets recruited by Vision and adopts the name of Speed. Wiccan and Speed discover their lineage when they meet for the first time and become very close while dealing with personal struggles like their convoluted origin and social acceptance.
WandaVision introduced Billy and Tommy as Vision and Scarlet Witch’s twins born from Wanda Maximoff’s reality-warping powers. Although fans theorized that Wanda would draw upon Mephisto’s life force to bring them to life as she did in the comics, the MCU chose to ignore Mephisto’s existence. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness instead saw Wanda attempt to steal versions of her sons from an alternate timeline, but since her mission ultimately failed, it’s uncertain where Wanda’s twins Billy and Tommy could appear next in the MCU and how a Young Avengers movie would recruit them.
America Chavez (Ms. America)
Xochitl Gomez starred alongside Benedict Cumberbatch as America Chavez in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. America Chavez, who goes by the superhero moniker «Miss America,» is closely tied to the multiverse, as she’s capable of kicking star-shaped holes in the very fabric of reality. In the comics, America Chavez joins the Young Avengers when the reincarnated Loki tries to persuade her into killing Wiccan, another Young Avenger. America Chavez could easily become one of the most powerful MCU characters in the future, not to mention one of the most influential in matters of Marvel LGBTQ+ character representation. The end of Doctor Strange 2 saw her training at Kamar-Taj on Earth-616, which sets her up well to join the MCU Young Avengers.
Kid Loki
After the Void kills him, the original Loki cheats death and resurrects as a boy. In need of a fresh start, Kid Loki becomes a hero and joins the Young Avengers. The Loki Disney+ show introduced Kid Loki, played by Jack Veal, as a pruned variant of the God of Mischief in the Void. Little is known about the MCU’s Kid Loki and his motivations are yet to be confirmed, but he revealed that he was pruned from his timeline after killing Thor. Although he decided to stay in the Void, a future movie or show could feature him entering the MCU’s main timeline alongside Loki and Sylvie. This would allow him to join the Young Avengers cast either to betray them or help them fight powerful threats like the ethereal «Mother.»
Harley Keener or Nathaniel Richards (Iron Lad)
Iron Lad is the founding Young Avengers member, as he’s the one who recruits the first heroes to the team. In the comics, Iron Lad is actually Nathaniel Richards, a superhero from the 31st century who travels back in time to prevent himself from becoming the villain Kang the Conqueror. The MCU can handle Iron Lad’s connection with time travel in quite a few different ways given the infinite possibilities that Kang the Conqueror has opened up after the death of He Who Remains in the Loki finale. The most likely scenario is that Nathaniel will be a young MCU variant of Kang who was able to travel to the main MCU after Sylvie unleashed all of his other multiversal counterparts. Hence, he could be one of the few Kang variants not played by Jonathan Majors.
Another Iron Man successor who could take up the mantle of Iron Lad is Ty Simpkins’ Harley Keener, who was introduced in Iron Man 3 as Tony Stark’s protégé. He also made an appearance at Tony Stark’s funeral in Avengers Endgame. Iron Man 3 already set up Harley Keener as a possible Iron Lad when Tony Stark gifted him some of his technology in gratitude for the kid’s invaluable help during Tony’s unexpected adventure with the damaged MK-42 Iron Man armor. Using a time-traveling Harley Keener as the character who gathers the Young Avengers would be a clever way to continue Iron Man’s legacy, but having Nathaniel Richards become his own archenemy still remains the most likely possibility.
Kamala Khan (Ms. Marvel)
Iman Vellani made her acting debut in the Ms. Marvel Disney+ show as Kamala Khan. Kamala is often associated with another group of young Marvel superheroes, the Champions. However, the MCU will probably want to keep its newest generation of live-action heroes limited to a single team at first, most likely for a Young Avengers movie or show. Ms. Marvel made significant changes to Kamala’s superhero origin story from the comics, which had her develop stretching powers akin to Mr. Fantastic’s after being exposed to Terrigen Mists. In the MCU show, however, Kamala’s energy powers come from a bangle passed down by her great-grandmother, who came from another dimension, as well as her mutant DNA. Ms. Marvel/Kamala Khan is a very likely candidate for the MCU Young Avengers movie cast and will also appear in Captain Marvel 2.
Riri Williams (Ironheart)
Despite inheriting all of her father Tony Stark’s wealth and Iron Man technology, Morgan Stark may not want to follow in the dangerous footsteps of her father after his bittersweet sacrifice. Therefore, Riri Williams will be the one to take up the mantle of the MCU Young Avengers’ main armored superhero. In the Marvel comics, Riri Williams is a supergenius who catches Tony Stark’s attention when she reverse-engineers one of his Iron Man armors. After Stark falls into a coma, Riri becomes the superhero «Ironheart,» Iron Man’s official successor. Dominique Thorne will make her MCU debut as Riri Williams/Ironheart in Black Panther 2, where she may receive cutting-edge technology from Wakanda to create her armor, before starring in her own Disney+ show, Ironheart. Like Ms. Marvel, Ironheart is a member of the Champions in the comics, but she may join the MCU Young Avengers for a Young Avengers movie instead.
Miles Morales (Spider-Man)
Miles Morales, the successor of Peter Parker as Spider-Man, is another young superhero who has already been set up in the MCU. In Spider-Man: Homecoming, Donald Glover’s Aaron Davis mentions how he has “a nephew in the neighborhood.” In the comics, as well as in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and the Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales video game, Aaron Davis is Miles Morales’ uncle and a villain named «The Prowler,» who Donald Glover could play again in the future. Miles is a kid from Brooklyn who develops Spider-Man’s powers and dons the mask after Peter Parker dies.
With Miles Morales’ surge in popularity in recent times, it’s very probable that the MCU would want to introduce him sooner rather than later. Having him as a member of the next big-league team of MCU superheroes, the MCU Young Avengers, is the perfect opportunity to do it, much more so after Tom Holland’s time to hang up the spider-shooters arrives (or when he departs to Sony’s Spider-Man Universe if those end up being the long-term plans of Disney and Sony). This moment could lead to Miles Morales’ transformation into the MCU’s Spider-Man. Like Kamala Khan, Miles Morales is also a member of the Champions in the comics, but the Young Avengers cast would gladly welcome him.
Axl & Love
Thor: Love and Thunder introduced two possible members of the Young Avengers cast. The first is Astrid «Axl» Heimdallson, the son of Idris Elba’s all-seeing keeper of the Bifrost. Having inherited his father’s sight and ability to project himself, Axl would make a powerful addition to the MCU Young Avengers and is likely to appear again in some capacity moving forward.
The other Young Avengers movie candidate is Gorr/Thor’s daughter, Love. Although she’s technically an original character created for Thor: Love and Thunder, Thor’s daughter is an Avenger in the Marvel comics. Torunn Thorsdóttir is the daughter of Thor and Lady Sif in an alternate timeline and leads a version of the Avengers on Earth. Love, played by India Rose Hemsworth, isn’t this same character, but she is a powerful new addition to the MCU and will likely keep appearing at least as long as Thor does, meaning she could join the Young Avengers cast.
Vision
Lastly, Vision may be the connecting tissue that keeps the Young Avengers fighting together. In the comics, Nathaniel Richards retrieves a copy of the original Vision’s operating system and downloads it into one of his own armors, creating a brand-new Vision with a different identity. This Vision tried to be more «human» than his predecessor but was tragically killed by his own creator before he could enjoy a more normal life. White Vision’s introduction in WandaVision leaves the door open for the mind-wiped synthezoid to receive a new consciousness (or create his own) before teaming up with the Young Avengers.
Other important members like Hulkling, Noh-Varr a.k.a. Marvel Boy, and Prodigy are yet to be seen or announced. Still, their existence can be easily explained with elements the MCU has already set up, such as Hulkling’s Kree-Skrull heritage, which could be explored in The Marvels or Secret Invasion. Everything is almost ready for the MCU’s Young Avengers movie so Marvel should not miss its chance to bring them in.