Disney Parks fans got a genuinely big night out of this year’s D23, and the buzz wasn’t limited to any one park or coast. From a surprise celebrity cameo to a first teaser trailer for a brand new ride, the event delivered a steady stream of Avengers Campus updates that theme park fans have been waiting years to hear. Add in international expansion news for Hong Kong Disneyland and Shanghai Disney Resort, and it’s clear Marvel’s presence across Disney’s parks is about to grow substantially. Here’s a full rundown of everything announced, along with what it means for anyone planning a future visit to Disney California Adventure or beyond.
Iron Man Suits Up One More Time
The headline moment from last night’s D23 presentation was the first teaser for Avengers Infinity Defense, a new attraction confirmed to bring back several familiar faces from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Robert Downey Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Anthony Mackie, and Jeremy Renner are all reprising their roles for the ride, and Downey Jr.’s involvement carries some extra weight given where his character currently stands on screen. With Tony Stark no longer alive in the MCU, Downey Jr. is set to appear as Doctor Doom in Avengers: Doomsday instead, which makes his return as Iron Man specifically for this ride a genuinely fun full circle moment for longtime fans who grew up with him in that role.
Executives and creative designers used the D23 stage to give attendees a sneak peek at what’s coming to Avengers Campus at Disney California Adventure, confirming two new attractions joining existing favorites like Guardians of the Galaxy, Mission Breakout, and Web Slingers, A Spider-Man Adventure. Both new rides, Stark Flight Lab and Avengers Infinity Defense, are officially set to open in 2028.
You can check out the teaser in this X post from Discussing Film below:
First teaser for the ‘AVENGERS INFINITY DEFENSE’ ride.
Robert Downey Jr, Chris Hemsworth, Anthony Mackie & Jeremy Renner will all reprise their roles. pic.twitter.com/q0v1RVeEtt
— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) August 16, 2026
Uncle Jesse Crashes the Marvel Panel
Adding an unexpected twist to the evening, Disney superfan John Stamos stepped in as a temporary host, taking over hosting duties from Neil Patrick Harris during the segment covering Avengers Campus updates on the Horizons stage at D23, The Ultimate Fan Event presented by Visa. Stamos was joined on stage by Walt Disney Imagineer Brent Strong and Kevin Feige, President of Marvel Studios and Chief Creative Officer of Marvel, for a detailed discussion covering the growing lineup of Avengers themed experiences across Disney’s global parks.
Your Mission, Should You Choose to Accept It
Once it opens, Avengers Infinity Defense will welcome guests as new recruits joining the fight against King Thanos. The experience begins with a pre-mission briefing from Ms. Marvel, played by Iman Vellani, before sending guests on a mission to reassemble the Avengers and stop the mad titan from causing widespread destruction.
Alongside Vellani, several other actors are confirmed to reprise their roles specifically for this attraction, including Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye, Anthony Mackie as Captain America, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, and Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man. Once riders board, the attraction blends massive physical sets with expansive media screens, designed to make guests feel like they’re hurtling across multiple worlds throughout the experience. One quote shared during the presentation captured the ambition behind the ride’s design, noting, “The fun part about Avengers Infinity Defense is how we get to use every single trick in the Imagineering book, and inventing some new ones, to create this attraction.” Guests will travel to iconic Marvel locations including Asgard, Wakanda, and New York City throughout the ride, ultimately coming face to face with King Thanos himself.
Learning to Fly Like a Genius Billionaire
The second new attraction, Stark Flight Lab, also brings back a strong lineup of on-screen talent, with Robert Downey Jr. reprising Iron Man, Anthony Mackie returning as Captain America, and Brie Larson appearing as Captain Marvel. As previously detailed at SXSW 2025, guests will sit inside two-person gyro-kinetic pods that roll along a track before stopping in front of a giant robotic arm, delivering the sensation of training like a flying Avenger. The ride incorporates several high-speed maneuvers inspired directly by Iron Man’s on-screen flight sequences, deploying riders to a simulated flight test station that spins and whirls through the experience.
The Web Spreads to Hong Kong and Shanghai
The Avengers Campus expansion isn’t limited to Disney California Adventure either. Hong Kong Disneyland Resort is currently constructing an Avengers pavilion that will house the Avengers Research Testing Labs, an experience set inside a tower where Stark Industries and other brilliant minds, including Peter Parker as Spider-Man, work on cutting edge technology that inevitably attracts the attention of dangerous forces. Using more than 120 feet of storytelling technology, guests will travel across realms including Wakanda and Asgard alongside Spider-Man and other heroes. A new Quinjet landing platform is also under construction nearby, offering a dedicated spot for character encounters and promising to make a real visual statement on Hong Kong’s skyline once it reaches its full height.
Over at Shanghai Disney Resort, an entirely new Spider-Man themed land is on the way, marking the first land anywhere in the world dedicated exclusively to Spider-Man. The new area will be home to the Shanghai division of the Worldwide Engineering Brigade, known as W.E.B., an organization familiar to fans of the existing Avengers Campus locations at Disney California Adventure and Disney Adventure World, originally established by Tony Stark to encourage young innovators to experiment with new technology. Inside this new land, Peter Parker and his friends have created a set of Spider-Bots to help construct their experiments, including a brand new coaster that’s already had its final piece of track installed. Disney Imagineers are also collaborating with local artists on more than 20 murals throughout the land celebrating science, Spider-Man, and the Avengers more broadly, with early previews reportedly on display at the Imagineering Pavilion during this year’s D23 event.
Marking Your Calendar for 2028 and Beyond
With both Avengers Infinity Defense and Stark Flight Lab confirmed for a 2028 opening, guests planning a Disney California Adventure visit anytime soon shouldn’t expect to ride either attraction just yet, but it’s worth keeping construction updates in mind while planning trips over the next couple of years, since Avengers Campus itself is set to expand significantly and eventually reconnect with Cars Land. For fans specifically chasing Marvel content across Disney’s global parks, this also means Hong Kong and Shanghai are shaping up to be genuine bucket list destinations in their own right over the next few years, alongside the California expansion.
Are you more excited for Avengers Infinity Defense or Stark Flight Lab, or are you already planning a trip around the new Spider-Man land in Shanghai? Let us know in the comments which of these Marvel additions you’re most looking forward to experiencing once they open.
