Robert Downey Jr as Doctor Doom
It is the first news out of the Marvel Cinematic Universe to shock me in a very long time—that was the announcement that Iron Man actor Robert Downey Jr. is returning to the MCU as Dr. Doom in the next Avengers film, Avengers: Doomsday. Now, on its own, RDJ’s return was a little surprising but something I did think was a big possibility. Is this an inspired idea or a disaster in the making? I have some thoughts, so let’s get into them.
Before anything else, one thing has to be acknowledged. Much like, oh, I don’t know, a creator asking for likes near the top of a video, there is something about this move that reeks of desperation. There’s just no getting around it. Deadpool’s recent box office haul aside, the MCU is at a real low point, and Marvel clearly felt that they needed the return of both the Russo brothers and RDJ to get things back on track—or at least regain some positive attention. The one-two punch of a well-received hit movie and this announcement could go a long way to putting the MCU back on people’s radar in a more positive manner than it’s been for a while, as well as filling that void left behind by cutting the entire Kang story and actor loose.
Will RDJ Do Justice to Doctor Doom?
The fact that this move was done to garner attention is obvious. I totally understand if people do not like that and feel like it’s putting stunt casting ahead of the demands of the character. That can feel extra frustrating with Victor Von Doom—one of the best, if not the best, villains that Marvel has in their arsenal. He’s a really multifaceted character that can be as complex or as simple as you want to write him, and it still kind of works. Not to mention, he’s one of Jack Kirby and Stan Lee’s crowning achievements as a creative duo.
So, is this a disaster that does a disservice to that creation and the character that’s been built up in the decades since? Well, I hate to be a fence-sitter, but I’m going to have to go with maybe.
RDJ’s Talent vs Tony Stark’s Shadow
Here’s the thing: Obviously, Robert Downey Jr. will forever be tied to Iron Man. His Oscar-winning performance in Oppenheimer was fantastic, but let’s not kid ourselves—Iron Man is going to be mentioned in the first line of anything written about him 50 years from now. That creates a massive elephant in the room when it comes to this casting—a distraction that people may not be able to get around. But he’s also a very, very good actor, and I think people who talk about his potential Dr. Doom performance like it’s just going to be Tony Stark but evil are doing the man’s talents a disservice. He isn’t a one-trick pony and is perfectly capable of bringing something totally unique to the role, like a performance without a hint of Tony Stark to be found. I really do believe that’s possible.
Now, if they let him do it, is another question entirely. I could be eating my words here if the direction they decide to go in is some convoluted Tony Stark multi-variant who had Doom’s life or something—that honestly seems pretty likely. And I know it has some origins in a comic book that, honestly, I did not read. But I really, really hope that is not what they do.
The Dangers of a Multiverse Approach
I love Doctor Doom—full stop, period. No headache-inducing multiverse shenanigans about it. I don’t want them to do some wacky alternate Doom before we even get a version of the character on screen that resembles the great one from the comics. I mean, seriously—all the superhero films and three Fantastic Four movies later, and still the most faithful version of the character comes from the unreleased Roger Corman production. Like, what are we doing here?
Does the Robert Downey Jr. casting make messing it up again more probable? Sadly, I think so. I know they called him Victor Von Doom at Comic-Con, but there’s still a bunch of ways they could work around that with multiverse stuff. I want to hold out hope that there’s not a gimmick at play here and that he is genuinely just playing Doctor Doom. But you might be saying, “If there’s no explanation for why Doom looks like Tony Stark, that’s just going to be too weird.” Well, here’s the thing with this character—he has a built-in reason for that to never be a problem. Doctor Doom, with very rare exceptions, does not take his mask off for anything, and you have no idea how much I would love it if that were the case here.
The Masked Villain
The previous Fantastic Four movies didn’t care about this at all, just as they ignored most aspects of the character. The MCU, though, should just go all in—embrace it. No taking the mask off to tearfully emote. No cheating by showing him a bunch before he gets the mask. Just commit to the bit. Downey doing a convincing voice behind the mask with a great sense of physicality—that’s what I would love to see above anything else, honestly.
But I should probably be a realist here. The fact is, Disney would not want to do that. Maybe they could be talked into it, but I assume that they’re paying RDJ an ungodly sum of money and maybe significant points on the back end. And if that’s the case, they’re going to want to blast his face on every poster, trailer, and TV spot they can. Sure, he could make a pretty huge push to promote the movie either way, which would be huge, but Disney is a pretty risk-averse company, and it would just surprise me to see them pull off something like that.
Can RDJ Overcome the Challenges?
So it’s much more likely that even without the multiverse angle, we will see RDJ’s face. And maybe people will reject that, like it’s too distracting that it’s the same actor, which I do understand. But—and this is assuming the performance is compelling—I think we should be able to move past it. Now, the film should help us do that by styling him completely differently from Tony Stark, maybe making him nearly unrecognizable. But at the end of the day, I mean, acting is acting. If he can bring a worthy version of this character to the screen, the fact that he played Iron Man I don’t think should be a huge issue. But I do know there will be some who will get far more hung up on this than I will, and I wouldn’t really argue with that. Like, this is a problem that Marvel is clearly bringing on themselves.
I just really don’t want there to be some overly complicated multiverse plot to justify the look and drag down what makes Doctor Doom, Doctor Doom. I think he’s better than that, and I’m going to be really disappointed if this film just kind of banks on the novelty of this casting to be enough to make me care about the character. If they can overcome that, though, and the performance is great and the script is great, I just really don’t think I’ll have a huge issue with this weird choice. It may be a bizarre stunt cast, but it’s a bizarre stunt cast with a truly great actor, and I’m willing to see if he can prove that he’s right for the role.
Final Thoughts on RDJ as Doctor Doom
Now, I understand that’s going to be tough because, even independent of him being Iron Man, I don’t think he would have been on anyone’s short list of potential actors for this role. Like, Mads Mikkelsen probably would have been too predictable, but this just feels like a much stranger pick. I know there’s a lot of skepticism out there, and it makes a lot of sense. And, you know, maybe I should be more cynical myself, but the fact is, I think Robert Downey Jr. has a broader range than he’s often given credit for. And if he isn’t just playing a Tony variant, I hope he gets to show that off here.
I’ve been a little worried about the rollout of the X-Men and the Fantastic Four in the MCU so far. Between Multiverse of Madness, The Marvels, and Deadpool and Wolverine, I think they’ve been basking too much in the nostalgia they assume we have for the old Fox stuff instead of confidently moving forward and showing us their MCU takes on these characters. The Fantastic Four and its new title First Steps being in place alongside this bizarre announcement are a start, though, and hopefully it all leads somewhere worth going.
I don’t know if bringing back RDJ to the MCU will end up being a good idea, but I’m cautiously optimistic.
