Hey Everyone,
Paul here…
In the minds of many fans, the eventual return of Robert Downey Jr. to The Marvel Cinematic Universe, as Tony Stark, seemed inevitable. The question wasn’t if, but when? But I don’t think anyone could have predicted that he would be return to play a completely different character, let alone as the iconic villain, Dr. Victor Von Doom. Not only is Doom arguably Marvel’s greatest villain, but one of the greatest villains in the history of the medium. Marvel Studios also announced that the previously untitled Avengers 5, is now officially Avengers: Doomsday hitting theaters in May 2026, followed by Avengers: Secret Wars in May 2027. I suspect that much like how Infinity War was very much Thanos’ film, before the big showdown in Endgame. I think Doomsday will be our grand introduction to Victor Von Doom, where we get to know this legendary villain before the epic Secret Wars film the following year. 
Reactions to this announcement seem to be decidedly mixed (myself included). With some viewing this as a desperate attempt to reinvigorate The MCU with stunt casting. I tend to have more faith in Marvel Studios than that. Especially with directors Joseph and Anthony Russo, returning to helm the next two Avengers films, Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars. These are the guys who gave us The Winter Soldier, Civil War, Infinity War, and Endgame, which are all counted among the very best MCU movies. That’s an insane track record, and the brothers have been vocal about how, if they were ever to return to The MCU, it would be for a Secret Wars film.
Right off the bat, I think it’s very clear that there’s no way Robert Downey Jr. will be appearing as Tony Stark/Iron Man in any of these films, as certain rumors before this announcement have suggested. Marvel Studios also officially confirmed at SDCC, that the new Fantastic Four, will be appearing in both Doomsday and Secret Wars as well. So let’s dive in to this casting news! Is it a brilliant idea or an act of desperation? How exactly is this going to work on screen? I’ll also offer up some important background and context, regarding the characters and stories, that these films will be exploring.
First off, for those of you who aren’t familiar with Doctor Doom (shown above), especially because his live-action/big screen portrayals so far, have had about as much in common with his comic book counterpart as Big Bird from Sesame Street. Here’s a summary of the man, the myth, the legend… Victor Von Doom, courtesy of the Marvel Database:
Dr. Victor von Doom,Ph.D a.k.a. Doctor Doom is a Latverian politician who serves as the Monarch and Supreme Leader for The Kingdom of Latverian. He was scarred from an accident and wears an iron mask and armor to hide his true face. He is considered one of the most brilliant minds and scientists on the planet Earth. He is also a sorcerer with skills in magic matching the most powerful beings in the Universe, making him a potential candidate for Sorcerer Supreme. He hopes to bring order and betterment to humanity through world conquest. Unequalled in ability, ego, and will power, he has come into conflict with both superhumans and cosmic beings. He is best known as the rival of Reed Richards and archenemy of the Fantastic Four.
In another confirmation that the movies will be adapting the 2015 version of Secret Wars, Marvel recently revealed that Battleworld will be a major part of the film. For those of you unfamiliar with Battleworld and the source material, in the Secret Wars comic book, the multiverse is rapidly collapsing due to “Incursions”. There’s more to the story, but it’s too complicated to get into here. With help of Stephen Strange, Doom confronts the beings who set these events in motion: The Beyonders. Nearly omnipotent cosmic beings of untold power. Doom destroys The Beyonders and takes their god-like power for himself.
With most of the multiverse having been destroyed at this point in the story. Doom, using his new powers, saves what little pieces of the multiverse that are left and combines those fragments to create a new reality called Battleworld. As its creator, Victor declares dominion over this new world as God Emperor Doom.
As was explained, Doom’s archenemies may be Reed Richards and The Fantastic Four, but he’s also a major Avengers antagonist, and the premiere villain of The Marvel Universe. Adding another interesting wrinkle to all of this, is the complicated nature of Victor and Tony’s relationship. As Victor would put it, of all the so-called “heroes” in The Marvel Universe, Doom always harbored a quiet respect for Iron Man. In fact, when Tony was badly injured and left in a coma that he may not have woken up from, Doom turned over a new leaf and became a full blown superhero. Leaving villainy behind and taking up Tony’s mantle as The INFAMOUS Iron Man (one of my personal favorite Victor Von Doom stories). Victor played this role in the comics for a few years as he attempted to make up for his sins. Doom often straddle the line between hero and villain, which is one of the many reasons why he’s so interesting.
Another concern is that Doom is a character that I want to see stick around The MCU for awhile. A post-credits scene in Fantastic Four, as well as starring as The Big Bad in Doomsday and Secret Wars isn’t enough for this iconic character. For example, imagine if Magneto’s only appearances in The X-Men franchise were in X-Men and X2. Think about how much great stuff we would have missed. The X-Men movies run the gamut in quality from classic to fucking terrible, but no matter the film, whether it’s McKellen or Fassbender, Magneto was always fucking awesome.
Doom should be a major presence in The MCU, even after Secret Wars, like Magneto was in Fox’s X-Men franchise. Is Downey going to want to stick around for who-knows-how-many years playing Doom, after a decade in The MCU playing Tony Stark? Maybe he will. However, a recent rumor may have put this concern to rest. Unconfirmed sources have suggested that Marvel will be casting a different actor as Doctor Doom after Secret Wars. Suggesting that the film is some sort of soft reboot of The MCU, which makes a lot of sense. This rumor also gives credence to the idea that this Doom is a Tony Stark variant, but who really knows? It could be another bullshit internet rumor.
So the question becomes: How exactly is this going to work? They could go a few different ways. The most obvious one I’ve seen being banded about, is that this Doom will be a variant of Tony Stark. A lot of attention is being given, to how weird and shocking it will be for the other MCU heroes to encounter someone like Doom, only to be shocked to discover he looks just like Tony Stark! Yet any resemblance or connection between Doom and Tony could be handled multiple ways:
- It could be shown up front (the least interesting possibility, in my opinion)
- It could be hidden from the characters as a story twist/reveal
- The movies could ignore that Doom and Tony are being played by the same actor all together.
In the comics, Victor Von Doom’s face becomes horrifically scared and disfigured, the result a college science experiment, gone wrong when he was a young man. An accident that Victor blames on his old classmate, Reed Richards, and is the source of their lifelong rivalry. Outside of moments in private, Doom is always shown clad in his mask and battle armor. Even when he’s alone and outside of his armor, he still wears a mask in private because of his shame and vanity.
The few times we’ve seen Doom’s face, it still bares the scars from that fateful accident years ago. He’s also the ruler of his Eastern European homeland, Latveria. Which means he has an Eastern European accent.
Taking all of that into account, RDJ could play Doctor Doom as a totally new character, without the story or the other characters referencing any connection to Tony Stark. Personally, this is the way I’d like to see Doom handled in The MCU. Regardless, Doctor Doom deserves, no, NEEDS, a top-tier actor, and Downey certainly fits the bill.
So what do I think about all of this? At the end of the day I need more information. Let’s just say I’m cautiously optimistic about the whole thing. As I’ve said, this is certainly intriguing and interesting, but I can’t make a judgment on the wisdom of this casting until I know more about how they’re going to portray the character.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps will hit theaters on July 25, 2025. Avengers: Doomsday hits heaters May 1, 2026. With Secret Wars following about a year later, on May 7, 2027.
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