Robert Downey Jr. may be trading Tony Stark for Doctor Doom on the big screen, but Disney has found a pretty effective way to get him back in the Iron Man armour. A new First Look at Avengers Infinity Defense debuted at D23 2026, with Downey back alongside Chris Hemsworth‘s Thor and Anthony Mackie‘s Captain America. The huge new attraction is part of a much wider Marvel parks expansion stretching well beyond Disney California Adventure. Watch the promo above and read on for all the details.
Opening in 2028, Avengers Infinity Defense will send guests hurtling across the Marvel multiverse to reassemble the Avengers after King Thanos, a version of the Mad Titan who actually won, sets his sights on another reality.
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The First Look unveiled at D23 goes behind the scenes of the attraction, showing Downey, Hemsworth and Mackie filming new material in costume while offering an early taste of just how big Disney is going with this one.
The Avengers Assemble Again
The adventure begins with Iman Vellani’s Ms. Marvel recruiting guests for a mission that quickly becomes considerably more dangerous than your average theme-park orientation.
Riders will travel through locations including Asgard, Wakanda and New York City as they attempt to bring the Avengers back together and stop King Thanos, who comes from a universe where Earth’s Mightiest Heroes weren’t quite so mighty.
Downey returns as Tony Stark/Iron Man, Hemsworth is back as Thor and Mackie appears as Sam Wilson’s Captain America. Jeremy Renner is also confirmed to reprise Hawkeye, giving the attraction an Avengers line-up that doesn’t have to worry too much about inconvenient little things like MCU deaths and timelines.
Disney is promising much more than a few superheroes appearing on giant screens. Riders will be surrounded by massive physical sets that blend into huge media environments as they hurtle between worlds, with Imagineering saying it is pulling out practically every trick in its playbook while inventing some new ones along the way.
Avengers Campus Is Doubling in Size
Avengers Infinity Defense is only part of the major expansion underway at Disney California Adventure. The project will double the size of Avengers Campus, reconnect the area with neighbouring Cars Land and add a second attraction, Stark Flight Lab, which is also opening in 2028.
That ride will place guests in two-person “gyro-kinetic pods” that travel along a track before being picked up and manoeuvred by enormous robotic arms as part of an Avengers flight-training programme.
Downey will appear as Iron Man there as well, with Mackie’s Captain America and Brie Larson‘s Captain Marvel also involved.
Marvel Is Expanding Beyond California
Disney’s Marvel plans extend well beyond California, with major new attractions also taking shape elsewhere around the world.
At Hong Kong Disneyland, construction is underway on a new Avengers pavilion featuring Avengers Research Testing Labs, with Spider-Man and other Marvel heroes involved in an adventure built around technology developed by Stark Industries and Peter Parker.
Disney says the experience will incorporate more than 120 feet of what it calls “storytelling technology” as guests travel through realms including Wakanda and Asgard, while the surrounding area will also include a new Quinjet landing platform for character encounters.
Shanghai Disney Resort, meanwhile, is getting an entire Spider-Man-themed land, making it Disney’s first land anywhere devoted exclusively to the web-slinger. The area will include a major new Spider-Man thrill attraction, with Disney confirming that the final piece of coaster track has now been installed.
Avengers Infinity Defense and Stark Flight Lab are both scheduled to open at Disney California Adventure in 2028.
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