Marvel hid Hayley Atwell on the Avengers: Doomsday set by putting someone else's name on her chair
Marvel Studios pulled a sneaky on-set move to keep Hayley Atwell’s Avengers: Doomsday return secret — and she’s finally spilled the beans on how they pulled it off.
So, Marvel Studios are up to their usual espionage tricks again, and this time it involves a bit of funny business with Hayley Atwell on the set of the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday. Atwell recently spilled some behind-the-scenes details that show just how far Marvel will go to keep their secrets – even if it means the actors themselves have to lie low, literally by way of the humble director's chair.
The Strange Case of the Missing Chair Name
If you followed the official cast rollout for Avengers: Doomsday, you might have clocked that Atwell wasn't pictured in that line-up of cast chairs plastered all over social media. Turns out, there was a method to the madness. While speaking at the For the Love of Fantasy & Sci-Fi convention (a real thing, apparently), Atwell let slip what really happened on set.
When the interviewer cheekily gifted her a mini director's chair, Atwell confessed that her actual chair during filming didn't have her name or Peggy Carter's on it at all. Marvel left both off to keep her involvement under wraps. Instead, they resorted to a bit of subterfuge — and not a bad one at that.
Atwell explained on the panel:
'On set, I didn't have "Peggy Carter" or "Hayley Atwell"… I had "Jessica". I had a [codename] so that if press caught it or fans would catch it, they'd be like, "Jess? Who's that?"'
Codenames, Red Herrings, and Marvel's Love of Secrecy
If you think that codename – 'Jessica' – sounds oddly specific, you're not alone. Plenty of fans instantly talked of Jessica Jones (Krysten Ritter's character from the MCU's street-level corner), but this was all part of Marvel's plan. No sight or confirmation of Ritter on this film, so the ruse worked: anyone who caught a seat marked 'Jessica' would be none the wiser about Atwell's involvement. Atwell didn't seem to mind any of this cloak and dagger – in fact, she said she enjoyed taking part in the eventual surprise when audiences spotted her in the film.
This isn't the first time Marvel have played musical chairs with pseudonyms, either. When Chris Evans was filming for this same Avengers outing, his Steve Rogers character was hidden behind the codename 'Luke Cage' (another street-level name-drop). So if you see any mysterious character names on an MCU set, chances are it's just someone important hiding in plain sight.
Marvel gave Chris Evans the codename 'Luke Cage' for his character's chair on set, following the same strategy they used with Atwell.
The Doomsday Line-Up, and When To Watch
Avengers: Doomsday is shaping up to be the proper franchise juggernaut everyone's expecting, with the original Avengers heavyweights returning, a grab-bag of newer stars, and a few surprises still up Marvel's sleeve. The cast is massive: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Florence Pugh, Pedro Pascal, Paul Rudd, and a fair few more names crowding that poster.
The film is set for a cinema release on 18 December 2026, so the infinite spoiler-bait scavenger hunt isn't stopping anytime soon.
Avengers: Doomsday launches in UK cinemas on 18 December 2026.