At this year’s Marvel Studios panel at San Diego Comic-Con, fans were in for a stunning surprise. It was revealed that Avengers 5 will now be titled Avengers: Doomsday (nope that’s not it). Hold onto your popcorn, because the real jaw-dropper is that Robert Downey Jr. will be trading in his Iron Man suit to become a supervillain, the iconic Marvel villain, Doctor Doom. Talk about a plot twist!
Marvel’s most formidable villain, Doctor Doom, is finally making his MCU debut, but almost no one saw this coming. Downey catapulted the MCU to new heights with his iconic portrayal of Tony Stark in Iron Man back in 2008. So, what does this mean? Could Doom be an evil variant of Stark? With fans reeling, and questions piling up, we dive into how this could work. But first check out Downey’s spinetingling reveal below.
Robert Downey Jr. revealed as Doctor Doom!
Let’s dive into how his casting could work. One possible explanation for the shared casting is that you’ll most likely never actually see Doctor Doom’s face. The notoriously vain Victor Von Doom hides behind a mask, concealing his visage from everyone after an accident left it less than perfect. This means there’s no real need for us to see Robert Downey Jr.’s face as Doom. However, we suspect there’s more to Downey’s return than just a hidden face.
A more plausible explanation is that his Doctor Doom hails from an alternate reality. With Marvel Studios still deep into its Multiverse Saga and Avengers 6 set to be Avengers: Secret Wars, this makes perfect sense. It’s also crucial to remember that Iron Man and Doctor Doom have a significant history together in Marvel’s comic books. His casting choice is likely to draw on that background in some intriguing and unexpected ways.

The Connection between Iron Man and Doctor Doom
In the comics, Tony Stark and Doctor Doom share a rich and complex history, and the multiverse opens up endless possibilities for their narratives to intertwine.
It’s worth noting that in the Marvel multiverse, there are versions of Doctor Doom who are actually Tony Stark. For instance, in 2004, the character Iron Maniac was introduced. This version of Tony Stark, from Earth-5012, donned armor similar to Doctor Doom’s and fought Reed Richards of The Fantastic Four. Eventually, Iron Maniac was transported to the main Marvel universe, where he faced off against heroes like Spider-Man and Captain America.
Another intriguing option appears in the 2010 What If? Iron Man: Demon in an Armor #1. In this alternate reality, Victor Von Doom and Tony Stark swap bodies while in college. Trapped in Doom’s body, Stark vows revenge and embarks on a lengthy mission to dismantle Doom’s Stark Universal company.

Alternatively, there’s the Infamous Iron Man series, where Victor Von Doom builds an Iron Man suit following Tony Stark’s disappearance after Civil War II. While this doesn’t explain why Doom and Stark would share the same face in the MCU, it highlights the significant overlap in their paths and histories.
Or, quite simply, Robert Downey Jr. might be portraying Victor Von Doom as Doctor Doom with no connection to Tony Stark. Since Doctor Doom is typically masked, RDJ could be providing only a vocal performance, allowing audiences to clearly distinguish this role from his iconic portrayal of Iron Man.
Could it all connect to the new Fantastic Four?
This possibility gains further credence with Kevin Feige’s earlier announcement at the panel. Feige revealed that the upcoming Fantastic Four film, now officially titled Fantastic Four: First Steps, will be set in an alternate, retro-futuristic 1960s. While Doctor Doom may not be the main antagonist in First Steps—that role will be filled by Ralph Ineson’s Galactus—it’s likely that Doom will still make an appearance in some capacity.
We also know that the Fantastic Four will eventually join the MCU, as they’re set to appear in both Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars. It’s reasonable to assume that Doctor Doom will accompany them on this journey. The upcoming Fantastic Four film could provide an origin story for Downey’s character before he takes a central role in Avengers: Doomsday. This would allow him, along with the versions of characters played by Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn and Ebon Moss-Bachrach, to transition into the main MCU when their world faces potential destruction by Galactus.

Why it will be great for the MCU and fans
The MCU has certainly experienced a lull recently, with Disney facing several major flops and losing hundreds of millions of dollars. Kevin Feige has acknowledged this shift and has committed to prioritizing quality over quantity. This change is evident with this year’s sole MCU theatrical release, Deadpool & Wolverine. The next installment won’t arrive until 2025’s Captain America: Brave New World. With the Russo Brothers set to direct the upcoming Avengers films and Robert Downey Jr. making a return, it seems the MCU is poised to regain its former quality.
If we’re honest, we’ve all shared our opinions on various castings over the years, and many of those opinions have been negative. However, most, if not all, of these castings end up working out for the best. While there will be many ‘Gwyneth Paltrows’ questioning, “I don’t get it, are you a baddie now?” Marvel knows what they’re doing and bringing back their most bankable star in any capacity will undoubtedly will get bums on seats and money in the bank.

Heck, even Robert Downey Jr.’s initial casting as Iron Man was met with skepticism. It’s hard to believe that back in 2007, he was seen as a major gamble and that director Jon Favreau had to plead with Marvel to cast him. Similarly, after Wade Wilson’s disastrous debut in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, who could have predicted that Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool would go on to break box office records, just as he did this past weekend?
The list of initially controversial castings is extensive: Heath Ledger as the Joker, Mark Ruffalo as the Hulk, and (slightly off topic) but even Daniel Craig as James Bond. Craig’s casting led to calls for a boycott of Casino Royale and a dedicated website (craignotbond.com). It really goes to show that generally judgements are best reserved after viewing. So maybe just maybe producers behind multi-million-dollar movies often know what they’re doing. Personally, I’m excited to see how Robert Downey Jr. will be reintroduced into the mix.
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