Summary
Marvel Cinematic UniversestarRobert Downey Jr. reveals how he was cast as Doctor Doom inAvengers: Doomsday. At San Diego Comic-Con this year, Marvel announcedDowney Jr.’s return to the MCU as Doctor Doom, which came as a shock considering the actor had retired from the franchise in 2019’sAvengers: Endgame. However, instead of returning as Iron Man inAvengers: Doomsday, the Academy Award-winning actor will instead be playing Victor von Doom aka Doctor Doom, as he recently confirmed while discussing how the casting came about.
Downey Jr. recently appeared on The Hollywood Reporter’sAwards ChatterPodcast, where he opened up about his return to the MCU and how he landed the Doctor Doom role. It turns out that having him back as Iron Man was never something Marvel Studios and Downey Jr. discussed, as they wanted to make sure this could be a special return for the actor. He stated the following:
“So, probably a year ago…cause, you know, [Kevin] Feige and I have kept in touch. We’re pals. Favreau, Feige, and I have kept in touch. I’m close with the Russo Brothers; we have other business we’re doing. So, there’s this little group of fellow travellers and I had this instinct that I wanted to go to Bob Iger and I had an idea outside of the Cinematic Universe for how I could be of service to what’s going on in the Parks and all their location-based entertainment.
Susan and I were sitting down with Feige at one point and he said, ‘It just keeps occurring to me that if you were to come back…‘and Susan was like, ‘Wait, wait, come back as what?’ Then we both realized over time that it was another thing that just disproves any doubt anyone could ever have about that guy, a very sophisticated creative thinker, about how can we not go backwards, how can we not disappoint expectations,how we can continue to beat expectations? And he brought up Victor Von Doom.I looked up this character and I was like, ‘Wow.’ Later, Kevin goes, ‘Let’s get Victor Von Doom right. Let’s get that right.’
So then I said to Kevin, ‘Can I go talk to Bob Iger?’ He goes, ‘About?’ I go, ‘About everything. I’d gone to Bob’s house and I don’t know how to describe that experience. I’ve had a lot of really cool experiences, but I go to Iger’s pad, we sit down and he goes, ‘I like it.’ I was like, ‘He likes it.’ He said, ‘Come by the Imagineering Campus.’ Feige and I go to the Imagineering Campus and you want to talk about two guys that are not easy to have their minds blown, let alone at the same time…I can’t say too much, but what is going on there right now is so beyond my expectation of what was possible.”
Every Confirmed Cast Member In Avengers: Doomsday (So Far)
Avengers: Doomsday looms closer and the confirmed cast members set to star in the next MCU team-up movie are steadily emerging as weeks progress.
What RDJ’s New Comments Reveal About Marvel’s Multiverse Saga Plans
Reports Indicated Marvel Was Considering Pivoting To Doctor Doom Last Year
With Downey Jr. giving the full story about how he and Marvel Studios finalized his Doctor Doom gig, it reveals a number of key things about his casting. After Kang the Coqueror’s MCU debut was underwhelming, it became evident that Marvel Studios was going to have to adjust their plans, which only became more clear whenKang actor Jonathan Majors was arrestedfor and later convicted of assault. The fact thatDowney Jr. and Marvel Studios began conversations over a year ago shows thatthe executives were well aware that it was not going to work out to have Kang as The Multiverse Saga’s villain.
The fact that it took as long as it did to properly sign off on this idea shows that Marvel Studios definitely wanted to ensure they got Doctor Doom as right as possible. Since Victor Von Doom has already had a few live-action depictions with bad reception, the stakes are higher than ever for the MCU. Plus,Doctor Doom isn’t just a major Fantastic Four villain; he’s a large Marvel antagonist.So Kevin Feige and his team know how bad it will get for Marvel Studios if they don’t get Doom right.
Time will tell how they fully execute their vision of Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom, as Victor is a vastly different character from Tony in many ways. Whether or not fans will get to see Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom before 2026 remains to be seen, with theories floating around that he may make his return to the franchise in 2025’sThe Fantastic Four: First Steps. WhenAvengers: Doomsdaystarts filming in 2025, audiences will hopefully get more clues as to where they are going with this iteration of Doctor Doom.
“I believe that RDJ as Doctor Doom is a very bold creative swing, one that’s certainly high risk while offering very high rewards.” -Kevin Erdmann,Robert Downey Jr’s Doctor Doom Casting Is A Bold Move By Marvel And I Can’t Wait To See His MCU Return
Marvel Fans’ Reactions To RDJ’s MCU Return As Doctor Doom Have Been Mixed
Some Fans Have Accused Marvel Of Playing It Safe By Casting RDJ
Even though Downey Jr. being set to playDoctor Doom in the MCUis one of the biggest news to come out in 2024, there has been a mixed reception to his return. On the positive end of the discussion,there are, of course, passionate Downey Jr. and MCU fans who are thrilled to see the actor who began the franchise come backafter his conclusion inAvengers: Endgame. Despite the fact that many wanted him back as Iron Man, some are just thrilled to see Downey Jr. in The Multiverse Saga.
But on the opposite end,many are expressing their disappointment in Marvel Studios playing it safe by just bringing back the MCU’s biggest actor. Rather than giving a different actor the opportunity to play Doctor Doom, there is the opinion that Marvel Studios took the easy way out by having Downey Jr. play Doom. There had also been a lot of fan casting for fellow Hollywood stars like Cillian Murphy (who was the lead inOppenheimer, the film that earned Downey Jr. his Oscar win) to be the perfect Doctor Doom casting that now doesn’t get to come to fruition.
Robert Downey Jr.
Avengers: Doomsday(2026),Avengers: Secret Wars(2027)
There are also many who have sharedhow they felt that Victor should be played by a Romani actor instead of Downey Jr.By casting Downey Jr. as the iconic villain, Marvel Studios has essentially erased Doctor Doom’s cultural heritage. Given how few famous Romani actors there are in Hollywood, Doctor Doom could have become a breakout role for a lesser-known actor.
Avengers: Doomsday Begins Filming Next Year
The Fifth Avengers Movie Is Slated To Release June 18, 2025
Avengers: Doomsdayis currently expected to start filming sometime in 2025, with Anthony and Joe Russo set to return to the MCU as the directors of the Phase 6 film. Outside of Downey Jr.’s Doctor Doom, there are a handful of actors who have been confirmed forAvengers: Doomsdayalready. However, more are set to be revealed at a later time, most likely when they get extremely close to starting principal photography.
Another bit of big news to come out of San Diego Comic-Con 2024 is thatThe Fantastic Four: First Stepscast has been confirmed to appear in bothAvengers: DoomsdayandAvengers: Secret Wars. In June 2024,Benedict Cumberbatch confirmed Doctor Strange would be inAvengers 5, back when they hadn’t revealed Doom’s involvement yet. Carol Danvers actor Brie Larson has also strongly suggested thatCaptain Marvel will return forAvengers: DoomsdayandAvengers: Secret Wars.
Originally, Simu Liu, who joined the MCU in 2021, was set to havea major role as Shang-Chi inAvengers 5. While that may no longer be the case, Liu is most likely going to be back as Shang-Chi inAvengers: Doomsday. The bigger question, however, iswhetherAvengers: DoomsdayandAvengers: Secret Warswill be filmed back-to-back. Since the Russo brothers are directing bothAvengers: DoomsdayandAvengers: Secret Wars, which are being written by MCU veteran scribe Stephen McFeely, it would make sense to have them filmed together.
In terms of other MCU actors coming back forAvengers: DoomsdayandAvengers: Secret Wars,it is likely that characters like Spider-Man, Daredevil, Deadpool, Wolverine, and Loki, among many others, will be back. Even though rumors are always swirling about other Marvel actors also coming back, such as Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Men, time will tell how big Marvel Studios will go for the next Avengers movies. For now, the MCU audience will have to wait and see what Marvel Studios has in store forAvengers: DoomsdayandAvengers: Secret Wars.
