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Another San Diego Comic-Con is in the books. I was there for my 16th year! There were some cool things that went down, like Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman surprising Hall H with a screening of Deadpool & Wolverine, as well as a giant drone show over Petco Park. The drone thing was actually really cool. We watched it from our hotel room. You could tell how much Marvel has riding on D&W’s success and the buzz around the Con was that it’s a really fun movie.
However, the biggest news from SDCC this year caught fans completely off guard. It came during Saturday evening’s Marvel panel and very quickly and fiercely divided fans. After making a very dramatic exit from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Robert Downey Jr. is returning as Doctor Victor Von Doom, the bad guy in two new upcoming Avengers movies, Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars. What makes this such a big deal is that RDJ, of course, played Tony Stark aka Iron Man, the hero who sacrificed himself to save the world from Thanos. This must be what all of that quiet retooling was about.
One character has been noticeably absent from the Fantastic Four teases so far: their longtime nemesis, Doctor Doom. But at Marvel’s traditional Hall H panel at Comic-Con 2024 on Saturday, sibling directors Joe and Anthony Russo announced that the iconic supervillain is indeed coming to the Marvel Cinematic Universe — and he’s going to be played by the franchise’s most beloved actor.
That’s right, newly minted Oscar winner Robert Downey Jr. is returning to Marvel, but not as Iron Man/Tony Stark. This time, he’ll be playing Doom — first in the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday and then in Avengers: Secret Wars. Doom is integral to the Secret Wars comic and promises to serve a similar role on the big screen.
In Marvel comics, Doctor Doom is often surrounded by replica Doombots, and the announcement was made in a similar fashion. A group of people in Doom costumes took the stage, only for Downey to reveal himself to massive crowd applause.
“New mask, same task,” Downey said on stage while clad in Doctor Doom robes, after taking off his metal mask. “What can I say, I like playing complicated characters.”
How could this possibly happen? There are some similarities between Stark and Doom in Marvel comics. They both wear metal masks, they’re both rich, and they’re both scientific geniuses at a level that impresses aliens and gods. But they’ve also intersected more directly before. Following the events of the 2016 Marvel comic Civil War II, Stark was in a prolonged coma, and Victor Von Doom took on the mantle of Iron Man in his place in the comic series Infamous Iron Man.
Now, we’ll be seeing something of a reverse, with the actor known for playing Iron Man on screen taking on the mantle of Doctor Doom. Since this is a multiverse story (the Russos explicitly said it’s building up to the collision of parallel universes in Secret Wars), it’s possible that this is an alternate-universe version of Stark from somewhere out there in the Marvel multiverse.
Avengers: Doomsday is now dated for May 2026, and Avengers: Secret Wars is dated for the following year in May 2027 — parallel to the Russos’ previous MCU directing efforts, Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, coming out a year apart.
Oh, the multiverse, what an ultimate workaround. It’s kind of like how a soap opera has a never ending supply of twin siblings and back-from-the-dead moments. It takes away all of the emotional stakes. We were having dinner with friends when the news broke and everyone at the table audibly gasped and went, “What the F?! How would that even work?” RDJ has also made a big deal in the past about saying that he wouldn’t be returning as Tony Stark ever again. I guess he had his fingers crossed behind his back because he never mentioned playing potential evil variants.
I’ll be honest about my thoughts. Between RDJ’s stunt casting and the Russo Brothers coming back, it just feels like a desperate grab to make people care about the MCU again. We’ve talked before about why I think interest has waned but tl;dr the movies are too long, the Phase 4 and 5 movies aren’t very good, and the crossover shows have been a slog and feel like homework. How will they even set all of this up in such a short amount of time? Honestly, it kinda feels like Marvel is trying to make the Avengers great again but they’re skipping all of those middle stops towards telling us how they’re getting there. That said, I’m not completely opposed to seeing where this goes, but I just really hope that it doesn’t take away from Tony’s ultimate sacrifice and ruin the character. Viewers who invested in Phases 1-3 will not forgive that.
Just to give some context to this whole thing: In the comics during the multiverse saga, there is a Tony Stark variant who is Dr. Doom. So it is comic book accurate. And it’s a great way to bring back their flagship star during a downswing. I personally think it’s kind of brilliant.
Thanks for explaining how it works character wise. And for non-comic book fans I hope they incorporate it in the movie. Since I was clueless.
Thank you, A! Needed to be said. Marvel is staffed by legions of comic nerds far too industrious and loyal to let that slide.
Also, Pedro Pascal. So I will be seeing it.
Came here to say the same. It’s clever and there’s precedent. I’m looking forward to seeing how the story plays out.
“it’s comic accurate” is the defense MCU fans always pull when it comes to bad writing. As comics reader, I say: some comics are bad and shouldn’t be adapted.
Turning one of Marvel’s most famous characters into a variant played an actor that is already the face of the MCU’s most famous character is a huge mistake. It sets Doom to become just “Evil Tony Stark.” When that’s not even what the character is about. It’s also unnecessary, like making MCU Storm a Black Widow variant.
Also, VICTOR VON DOOM IS NOT WHITE. Casting RDJ is whitewashing.
@SquiddusMaximus. The comicbook fans you deride are the ones fighting the legions of MCU stans that defend this blantant hail mary that involves whitewashing a Romani character. Marvel Comics readers are not the bad guys here.
@ …says: OKAY
Agree.
I love this 3000
I was hoping they would reveal the Kang recast. But looks like that is abandoned. And they listened to the white fan boys. And gave them another white man to worship.
And how in the world are they just going to ignore he was Iron Man for the last twenty years. This is some General Hospital level of character swapping.
Meh. I thought Kang — with or without Majors — was just boring and not a massive baddie like Thanos. I prefer Marvel drop that plotline altogether and go straight for Dr. Doom.
Kang should never have been the big baddie anyway.
Very bad idea. I for one was glad we wouldn’t have to see RD Jr ever again, can’t stand him. Same goes for the Russos.
Aren’t there any other actors/directors around in Hollywood or elsewhere that they could have used? That could have taken the MCU forward with fresh ideas and input?
We just started watching the movies with my kids as they are both old enough; and wow, the first phase was so well done. It introduced the characters, there was the right amount of action and just enough with the tie-ins to the other movies.
My kids have asked questions about the newest phases and man, there is just TOO MUCH. Between the tv shows and the movies, I would like to watch something else this year or not be on my computer as we watch explaining something and how it ties in. So, tl;dr I agree @Rosie, they are just hoping to get back some of us older, jaded viewers since we all loved Tony Stark.
I love Dr. Doom. Like really love him. If he were a real person, I’d marry him. There’s something about the whole “Doom does not know failure” that’s kind of a turn on. I’m weird. I know.
I HATE this. I hate it! Yes, this is actually a thing but the comic this is from was really lame if you ask me and I’m super disappointed this is the Doom we’re going for. I actually was really rooting for Pedro Pascal to get the role of Doom or even Diego Luna or someone else. Don’t get me wrong, I love RDJ but no one needs him as Doom. This feels really pathetic and grasping at straws.
wow, am i not interested. i’m a pretty big marvel fan overall-i saw everything up until endgame, and then my interest waned. i really liked the marvels (having not seen the shows, it was still easy to pick up what was going on, and it made me go back and watch the kamala khan show). i thought it was super fun. i just saw deadpool and wolverine, and i just cannot recommend it enough! i absolutely loved it. i thought it was pretty respectful to the wolverine character (which i was wondering about after the perfection of Logan), and again-just super fun. and i’m also here for the new captain america-there was a trailer before deadpool, and i’m here to support anthony mackie. but i just cannot find any interest in more avengers movies.
Does this mean Chris Pratt is still going to be around🤬
The worst Chris is always the Chris we can’t get rid of.
Well, that RDJ pose is something. Dude, it’s a Marvel movie, not the second coming. Get over yourself. Comic Con seems to bring this kind of nonsense out, doesn’t it?
I mean it’s their job to hype things up to get the money from the fans wallets.
It’s just sounds like Marvel has run out of actors to hire.
Blah. He rubbed me wrong during the Oppenheimer Oscar campaign/promotion. This type of movie, if well made, will make money more or less regardless and in spite of casting. He was good as Iron Man, but no actor in this type of role has touched Hugh Jackman as Wolverine. Marvel is wasting money on this casting.
I like RDJ and all that jazz but this isn’t 2008 anymore. It’s sad not having him as IronMan but I really don’t need to see this (and yes I know this happened in the comics but a lot of ish happens in the comics and not all of it needs to be in the MCU). I would have liked Kang, re-cast or whatever, but someone else. Also, it makes the past 4 years feel irrelevant since the big push was Kang and now….this. Last, I just want something fresh. I haven’t really invested in the last few Marvel properties. I am excited to see the new Cap America. That one will get me out to theaters. They would have to screw up really bad for me not to go see that.
Doom is a Romani man. Not a white man. This is racism, period.
Read the graphic novels Book of Doom and Triumph and Torment. Being Romani is a core aspect of Doom’s character. He’s been Romani for longer than Magneto has been Jewish.