Robert Downey Jr., he’s just like us. Or at least, he is in terms of being unsure about returning to the MCU… That is, up until Marvel chief Kevin Feige sold him on playing Doctor Doom.
Downey Jr. discussed what turned the tide for him on a recent episode of The Hollywood Reporter’s Awards Chatter podcast, where he was mainly on to discuss his role on HBO’s The Sympathizer. During one of his regular meetings with Feige, Downey recalled, “He said, ‘It just keeps occurring to me, if you were to come back … Susan was like, ‘Wait, wait. Come back as what?’”
Downey is referring to Susan Downey, his wife and producing partner. And it’s pretty clear that nobody, from Downey Jr. to Feige, wanted to undo Tony Stark’s heroic sacrifice at the end of Avengers: Endgame. However, another idea was thrown on the table.
Continued Downey, “How can we not go backwards? How can we not disappoint expectations? How can we continue to beat expectations? And he brought up Victor Von Doom. I looked into this character. Later on, he goes, ‘Let’s get Victor Von Doom right.'”
So is casting the guy who played Iron Man for over a decade getting Victor Von Doom right? Particularly after several Fantastic Four movies that decidedly did not get the iconic Marvel Comics villain right? We won’t know until Avengers: Doomsday hits theaters in 2026 — or perhaps in Fantastic Four: First Steps, which hits theaters next year — but one other person who was convinced? Disney’s Bob Iger.
Downey Jr. simply recalled meeting with Iger before heading to Disney’s Imagineering Campus, presumably to discuss his actual return as Tony Stark for an upcoming theme park ride. Iger already knew about the Doctor Doom idea, and told Downey Jr., “I like it.”
And that’s how history is made, folks! We’ll find out if they got Victor Von Doom right, soon enough.
