If Avatar: Fire and Ash is as big a box office success as anticipated, the film’s release is a prime opportunity for studios to debut some major trailers. There are several 2026 tentpole releases of which filmgoers have yet to see anything more than some production photos.
While trailer packages vary by theater chain and format, insiders still have a strong sense of what audiences are likely to see before their next trip to Pandora
Avengers: Doomsday
A first look at the next chapter in the MCU is pretty much a given and a trailer attached to Avatar: Fire and Ash would be a surefire way to get as many eyes on it as possible. First impressions are also important, and fans will likely get their initial introduction to Doomsday, not on their phone screens, but in a premium format. After a series of disappointing box office returns for the once-untouchable MCU, Disney is betting big that fans will come back for Doomsday.
Robert Downey Jr. revealed to be Doctor Doom at Marvel Studios’ Hall H presentation at San Diego Comic-Con via OnTheRedCarpet YouTube
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The Russo Brothers, the directors of the previous two Avengers films, are helming the massive project. Most fans are aware that Robert Downey Jr. will appear, not as the heroic Iron Man but as the villainous Doctor Doom. But perhaps along with all of the characters confirmed to return, Disney will give fans an Easter egg or two to build hype.
Avengers: Doomsday is scheduled to arrive in theaters December 2026.
The Odyssey
Christopher Nolan may be one of the few directors who can still draw an audience on his name alone. But his upcoming film, The Odyssey, can only benefit from a trailer attached to Avatar: Fire and Ash. Nolan’s historical epic, based on the ancient Greek poem by Homer, was shot with brand-new, state-of-the-art IMAX cameras.
Tom Holland as Spider-Man in Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), Marvel Studios
A recent piece in Empire revealed that, in addition to Matt Damon as Odysseus, the cast is stacked. Tom Holland, Charlize Theron, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson, Zendaya, and a mix of rising and established stars round out the ensemble.
The Odyssey isn’t hitting theaters until next July, but tickets for 70mm IMAX screenings went on sale earlier this year and sold out almost immediately.
Untitled Steven Spielberg Movie
Little is known about Steven Spielberg’s next film, which wrapped production earlier this year. But scooper Daniel Richtman claims that audiences for Avatar: Fire and Ash will get a first-look trailer.
Steven Spielberg being interviewed – YouTube, The Late Show With Stephen Colbert
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Spielberg, who awed ’80s sci-fi fans with Close Encounters of the Third Kind and E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, worked with frequent collaborator and screenwriter David Koepp for what may or may not be a UFO movie. According to Koep, Spielberg wrote a 50-page treatment before handing it off. “He was as involved as I’ve ever seen him on any movie I’ve written for him to direct,” Koepp said.
Screenwriter and Steven Spielberg’s longtime collaborator David Koepp on the upcoming Untitled Steven Spielberg Film, which he penned: “We finished shooting about 3 weeks ago… It’s a very emotional experience this movie” pic.twitter.com/INsL7KR3wD
— Deadline (@DEADLINE) June 18, 2025
The cast includes Emily Blunt, Josh O’Connor, Colin Firth, Eve Hewson, Colman Domingo, and Wyatt Russell.
Aside from the cast, the most surprising bit of known information is that John Williams has come out of retirement to do the score.
The movie lands in theaters June 2026
Final Thoughts
Avatar: Fire and Ash has the opportunity to do the same thing at the movies that the most recent episodes of Stranger Things have done with streaming: create a shared cultural experience.
A screenshot from Avatar: The Way of Water – YouTube, Avatar
The trailers that show before the Avatar film will be a part of that, potentially setting the stage for future event films that bring audiences back to theaters.
Which trailers are you most excited to see before Avatar? Let us know in the comments!
Do you remember when Fantastic Four 2025 was being called a “Tentpole” movie?
The industry was shocked at how badly that movie flopped. Thunderbolts too.
Now we are seeing the same assumption. The “fans” will return. The problem, now, of course, is, there are far fewer fans out there. Many of us are boycotting Hollywood on principle. Because of the actors’ TDS. Others, because Disney propaganda is trying to make your kids gay/trans.
So, that’s a massive reduction in the potential audience (which could also dent Avatar 3 significantly, note!).
The “Modern Audience” are now alienated due to only 5 girl-bosses in the movie lol.
Doomsday is in a sh*t-ton of trouble.
Sweet! Since I’ll miss avatard, I’ll miss the teaser.
Next, I’ll miss the entire movie arc.
Go disney! Go disney! Go disney!
“Ire & Trash”
What a brilliant moniker.
The MCU is a dying franchise thanks to Disney’s abysmal handling of it the last few years. The Odyssey is pure woke trash with multiple blacks playing Greek gods, so that’s a hard pass from me. I didn’t even think Spielberg was still making movies, but since his last good movie was Catch Me If You Can almost 25 years ago, I strongly doubt his next movie will be worth watching.
Putting trailers in front of a guaranteed success makes sense. I won’t see them since I won’t watch Cameron’s latest mediocre garbage.