'Avengers: Doomsday' footage, 'Mandalorian' opening unveiled at CinemaCon

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The Walt Disney Co. staged a blockbuster-sized presentation for theater owners Thursday at CinemaCon, showing the opening to the new Star Wars film and new footage from “Avengers: Doomsday,” featuring the return of Chris Evans as Captain America.

Robert Downey Jr. was there to introduce the trailer for the film, which brings together the Avengers and the X-Men together in a Marvel Studios film for the first time.

“What I want to do is give away like 30,000 spoilers right now,” Downey said.

He’s returning to the franchise not as Iron Man, but as the main antagonist Victor Von Doom, or Doctor Doom.

Kevin Feige said they’ll be re-releasing “Avengers: Endgame” in September in the lead up to “Doomsday,” which, he said, “picks up where ‘Endgame’ left off.” It opens on Dec. 18.

“I think we might have nailed it,” Downey said.

Evans said he’d only come back if there was a good reason, and Doctor Doom was a good reason.

“The Mandalorian and Grogu” director Jon Favreau showed the audience the opening of the first Star Wars movie in seven years. The film, which opens on May 22, begins with a title card saying the Galactic Empire has fallen and ex-warlords remain scattered throughout and, in the Outer Rim, the Mandalorian and Grogu hunt them down.

The sequence shows a one man, and child, battle against one such ex-warlord, with a big fight on a snowy cliff as they attempt to take down what looks like AT-AT walkers. Later, Sigourney Weaver’s character scolds the bounty hunter for his messy job, which left the target dead and them with no new information.

She also proposes a new mission, which would put him back in the orbit of the Hutts, with Jabba’s heir Rotta the Hutt (Jeremy Allen White).

“’Star Wars’ made me fall in love with movies,” Favreau said. “I hope that our excitement and love and joy of Star Wars translates to a new generation of fans.”

He said that there are over 49 minutes of sequences filmed for large format screens.

Tom Hanks and Tim Allen made an appearance on behalf of “Toy Story 5,” in what is apparently their first time ever at CinemaCon. The two actors joked about seeing footage of them voicing Woody and Buzz for the original film, which came out in 1995, and saying they look like their grandkids.

Hanks said one of his iconic lines, “you are a toy” and Allen responded with one of his, “you are a sad, strange little man.”

They also showed a new scene showing Woody’s arrival back to Bonnie’s house after his adventures with Bo Peep. The film opens on June 19.

Dwane Johnson helped close out the presentation to promote the live-action “Moana,” in which he reprises his role as Maui.

He said his character was inspired by his grandfather, holding up a picture of him on his phone, describing him as charismatic with a “wicked sense of humor” and a “one of a kind spirit.” He also loved to sing. Frank Sinatra’s “My Way,” he said, was a favorite.

The new Moana, Catherine Laga’aia, also appeared on stage with Johnson.

“I grew up watching ‘Moana’ with my family,” she said. “I can’t believe I had this experience.”

Disney releases dominated the box office in 2025 with nearly $2.5 billion in domestic ticket sales and $6.6 billion globally with hits like “Lilo & Stitch,”“Zootopia 2” and “Avatar: Fire and Ash.” A box office driver for many years, it's fitting that Disney is closing CinemaCon.

Already this year, Disney has boosted the box office with its original Pixar hit “Hoppers,” which has made over $355 million globally to date. Kicking off the summer movie season, which begins the first weekend in May, is not a Marvel movie, however. It’s a legacy sequel from their 20th Century Studios: “The Devil Wears Prada 2.” Gird your loins.

Disney's impact on the exhibition industry cannot be understated. Last year its releases made up over 27.5% of the annual domestic box office alone. The studio also has a 60-day exclusive theatrical window, the most robust in Hollywood.

The Walt Disney Co. is facing its own challenges too. On Tuesday, the company began mass layoffs in its ranks, expected to total around 1,000 with some of the cuts coming from the movie studio and its marketing department.

Orson Welles once said, “if you want a happy ending, that depends, of course, on where you stop your story.” And, so, for an exhibition industry that operates on small margins, and with the box office still down around 20% from its pre-pandemic norms, Disney is about as close as the conference can get to going out on a high note.

Dwayne Johnson, cast member of the upcoming film "Moana," speaks during the Walt Disney Studios presentation at CinemaCon on Thursday, April 16, 2026, at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

Chris Evans, cast member of the upcoming film "Avengers: Doomsday, speaks during the Walt Disney Studios presentation at CinemaCon on Thursday, April 16, 2026, at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

Robert Downey Jr., cast member of the upcoming film "Avengers: Doomsday, speaks during the Walt Disney Studios presentation at CinemaCon on Thursday, April 16, 2026, at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

Tom Hanks, left, and Tim Allen, cast members of the upcoming film "Toy Story 5," speak during the Walt Disney Studios presentation at CinemaCon on Thursday, April 16, 2026, at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

Alan Bergman, Chairman of Disney Entertainment, Studios, The Walt Disney Company, speaks during the Walt Disney Studios presentation at CinemaCon on Thursday, April 16, 2026, at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

Jon Favreau, director of the upcoming film "Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu," speaks during the Walt Disney Studios presentation at CinemaCon on Thursday, April 16, 2026, at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

Alan Bergman, Chairman of Disney Entertainment, Studios, The Walt Disney Company, speaks during the Walt Disney Studios presentation at CinemaCon on Thursday, April 16, 2026, at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

Alan Bergman, Chairman of Disney Entertainment, Studios, The Walt Disney Company, speaks during the Walt Disney Studios presentation at CinemaCon on Thursday, April 16, 2026, at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

A maintenance worker walks past advertisements for the upcoming films "The Devil Wears Prada," left, and "Supergirl" during the opening day of CinemaCon 2026, the official convention of Cinema United, on Monday, April 13, 2026, at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

CinemaCon attendee Patrick Dougall strikes a pose inside an advertisement for the upcoming film "Toy Story 5" during the opening day of CinemaCon 2026, the official convention of Cinema United, on Monday, April 13, 2026, at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court sided Thursday with a Texas marijuana user who wants to legally own a gun, the latest in a line of firearm cases from a court that has expanded gun rights.

The justices, in a unanimous decision, sided with Ali Danial Hemani, who argued that a law barring guns from anyone who uses drugs illegally violates the Second Amendment. Hemani wasn’t charged with any other crimes or accused of using the weapon under the influence.

The decision is a loss for President Donald Trump’s Republican administration, which had defended the 1968 law despite arguing against other gun restrictions. The measure was also used in a case against Hunter Biden, who was convicted in Wilmington, Delaware, of buying a gun while addicted to cocaine in 2018. He was later pardoned by his father, then-President Joe Biden, a Democrat.

The opinion is the latest in a series of firearm cases to reach the Supreme Court since a landmark ruling expanding gun rights in 2022 led to a wave of challenges around the country.

Since then, the high court has upheld a law aimed at protecting victims of domestic violence and strict regulations on ghost gun kits but has struck down a ban on bump stocks, an accessory that enables rapid fire. The justices considered two firearm cases this term alone.

The legality and use of cannabis, meanwhile, has also shifted significantly in recent years. More than half of U.S. states have now legalized it broadly, and it’s gained widespread use for health purposes.

Recreational use remains illegal on a federal level, however, even after the Trump administration reclassified medical marijuana as a less-dangerous drug in April.

It’s rare to see standalone criminal charges filed against people accused of owning guns and using drugs. The charge is more often filed against people also accused of other crimes.

The case made for some unusual political alliances. The American Civil Liberties Union and the National Rifle Association both supported Hemani’s case, as did cannabis legalization groups like NORML. On the other side were gun safety groups like Everytown that usually oppose the Trump administration on Second Amendment issues.

Follow the AP’s coverage of the U.S. Supreme Court at https://apnews.com/hub/us-supreme-court.

FILE - The U.S. Supreme Court is seen, June 11, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib, File)