Summary
- Robert Downey Jr. landed the role of Doctor Doom through discussions with executives at Marvel Studios.
- Due to Kang’s poor response, Marvel Studios adjusted their plans and chose Victor von Doom as the next Avengers villain.
- Marvel wants to get Doctor Doom’s portrayal right, but they’re aware that a bad portrayal could cause a backlash from fans.
Marvel Cinematic Universe star Robert Downey Jr. reveals how he was chosen to play Doctor Doom Avengers: ArmageddonAt this year’s San Diego Comic-Con, Marvel announced that Downey Jr. would be returning to the MCU as Doctor Doom, which came as a surprise since the actor had starred in 2019’s The Last Airbender. Avengers: End GameHowever, Iron Man did not Avengers: Armageddonthe Oscar-winning actor will play Victor von Doom, aka Doctor Doom, as he recently confirmed while discussing the casting process.
Downey Jr. recently appeared in The Hollywood Reporter Award Discussion In the podcast, he talked about his return to the Marvel Universe and how he got the role of Doctor Doom. It turns out that Marvel Studios and Downey Jr. never discussed having him return as Iron Man because they wanted to make sure it was a special return for the actor. He said:
It was about a year ago… because, you know, [Kevin] Feige and I stayed in touch. We’re good friends. Favreau, Feige and I stayed in touch. I’m close with the Russo brothers; we have other things going on. So there was a small group of like-minded people that I instinctively went to Bob Iger with an idea outside of the cinematic universe about how I could help with what was happening in the parks and all of their location-based entertainment.
At one point, Susan and I were sitting with Fitch, and he said, “I’ve been wondering, if you come back…” Susan said, “Wait, wait, what role?” And then we both realized, and this thing over time completely dispelled any doubts that people had about this guy, that he’s a very sophisticated creative thinker who knows how to not backslide, how to live up to expectations, how to continue to exceed expectations? He mentioned Victor von Doom. I looked up the character, and I was like, “Wow.” And then Kevin said, “Let’s get Victor von Doom right. Let’s get right.”
And then I said to Kevin, “Can I go talk to Bob Iger?” He said, “Talk?” I said, “Talk about everything.” I’ve been to Bob’s house, and I don’t know how to describe that experience. I’ve had a lot of cool experiences, but I went to Iger’s house, and we sat down, and he said, “I love it.” I said, “He loves it.” He said, “Come to Imagineering.” Feige and I went to Imagineering, and you want to talk about two people who are not easy to surprise, let alone at the same time… I can’t say too much, but what’s going on there right now is far beyond what I expected.
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Reports surfaced last year that Marvel was considering shifting its focus to Doctor Doom
Downey Jr. recounted how he and Marvel Studios finalized the Doctor Doom role, which also revealed some key questions about his casting. After Kang the Conqueror’s underwhelming MCU debut, it was clear that Marvel Studios would have to adjust their plans, and this became even clearer when Kang’s actor, Jonathan Majors, was arrested and convicted of assault. Downey Jr. and Marvel Studios began conversations a year ago, suggesting that executives were well aware that casting Kang as a villain in the multiverse saga wasn’t going to work.
The fact that it took so long to officially greenlight the idea shows that Marvel Studios definitely wanted to make sure their portrayal of Doctor Doom was as accurate as possible. Since there have been several live-action versions of Victor von Doom that were poorly received, the stakes for the MCU are higher than ever. Additionally, Doctor Doom is not only the main villain of the Fantastic Four, but also the main villain of Marvel. Therefore, Kevin Feige and his team knew how badly things would be for Marvel Studios if Doctor Doom was not portrayed accurately.
Time will tell how they fully realize Downey Jr.’s vision for Doom, as Victor is very different from Tony in many ways. It remains to be seen whether fans will see Downey Jr. as Doom before 2026, with rumors suggesting he could return to the series in 2025. Fantastic Four: First Steps. when Avengers: Armageddon The film series will start filming in 2025. Hopefully, the audience will get more clues about the storyline from this “Doctor Doom” movie.
Avengers 5
Avengers: Doom is the fifth Avengers movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, where new and old heroes will come together to fight Victor von Doom, played by Robert Downey Jr. Avengers 5 will also mark the beginning of the sixth phase of the Marvel Universe.
Release date May 1, 2026
Studio: Marvel Studios
Distributor: Walt Disney Pictures
Upcoming MCU Movies
Source: THR’s Awards Chatter Podcast