AVENGERS: DOOMSDAY Directors Say Doctor Doom Will Be The Hero Of His Own Story; Discuss AI Usage In Movies

AVENGERS: DOOMSDAY Directors Say Doctor Doom Will Be The Hero Of His Own Story; Discuss AI Usage In Movies

Joe and Anthony Russo have talked more about what Doctor Doom brings to the table in Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars. The filmmakers are also coming under fire for their thoughts on AI usage in movies.

By JoshWilding - Mar 17, 2025 11:03 AM EST
Filed Under: Avengers: Doomsday

At last year's San Diego Comic-Con, Marvel Studios shocked the world by announcing that Robert Downey Jr. would return to the MCU as Doctor Doom in Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars

The actor was one of Marvel Studios' biggest box office draws as Iron Man, and with the franchise struggling since Avengers: Endgame's release in 2019, those movies could do with all the help they can get. 

Talking to Omelete, the Russo Brothers confirmed that Downey was attached to play Doom before they agreed to return. "That was Kevin [Feige], and interesting enough about that was, that conversation was had a while ago," Joe confirmed. "And then Robert tried to talk us into doing it, and we said 'no,' weirdly because we said we wouldn't come back."

Admitting that they "were resistant for a while" due to not "[having] a way in," he added, "One day, Steve McFeely, one of our key collaborators, said: 'I have an idea.' He called us, and we went, 'That's the story, that story has to be told. It's a really powerful story.'"

It seems the biggest draw of that story is Doom himself as the filmmaker went on to say, "We love villains who think they are the heroes of their own stories...that's when they become three-dimensional and when they become more interesting."

Thanos only had a few minutes of screentime before taking centre stage in Avengers: Infinity War, but Doom hasn't even been hinted at before now. A post-credits scene appearance in The Fantastic Four: First Steps seems likely, but for the Russos, "a lot of [their] focus is going" towards making Victor a compelling antagonist. 

"When you have an actor like Robert Downey, you have to create a well-shaped, three-dimensional character for the audience," Joe teased.

The Electric State hasn't been receiving positive reviews since launching on Netflix last week and, ahead of their MCU return, the directors have also come under fire for what some deem a controversial take on AI usage in movies. 

Talking to The Hollywood Reporter, Anthony called it a "valuable tool," leading to concerns AI might be used in the next Avengers movies. 

"We have to approach AI the same way we approach all technological innovations," he said. "It’s potentially a valuable tool, but it’s the kind of tool that artists always have to remain in control of, but there’s going to be some valuable role in the creative process and the filmmaking process."

In a separate conversation with The Times, Joe Russo confirmed they used AI for voice modulation on The Electric State, and shared, "There’s a lot of finger-pointing and hyperbole because people are afraid. They don’t understand. But ultimately you’ll see AI used more significantly."

Downey is no fan of AI, so chances are it won't play a significant role in the production of either Doomsday or Secret Wars. Marvel Studios has also faced backlash when it was utilised for Secret Invasion's opening credits, so many want to avoid repeating that mistake. 

Avengers: Doomsday is set to be released in May 2026, with Avengers: Secret Wars scheduled to arrive in May 2027. 

AVENGERS: Russo Brothers To Restore Focused Narrative With DOOMSDAY & SECRET WARS; Tease Doctor Doom’s Debut
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AVENGERS: Russo Brothers To Restore "Focused Narrative" With DOOMSDAY & SECRET WARS; Tease Doctor Doom’s Debut

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IAmAHoot
IAmAHoot - 3/17/2025, 11:16 AM
He's in good company then.

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ObserverIO
ObserverIO - 3/17/2025, 11:19 AM
@IAmAHoot - "Ultimately you’ll see AI used more significantly."

And here we are.
Feralwookiee
Feralwookiee - 3/17/2025, 11:20 AM
@IAmAHoot - IW Thanos was pretty great.
Endgame Thanos was ok.

I don't see anyway that they don't botch Doom. Even IF he doesn't come off as a quippy bumbling dope, I'll be constantly distracted by the horrible casting of RDJ. That will never sit right with me.
Feralwookiee
Feralwookiee - 3/17/2025, 11:24 AM
@ObserverIO - Yup. It's happened in just about every other industry, whether it's been automation or ai, mostly in blue collar fields so far.

It'll be funny to see these white collar and Hollywood elitist complaining about the same thing real working people have been going through for decades.
YOU WILL BE REPLACED AND YOU WILL LIKE IT. 🤣
IAmAHoot
IAmAHoot - 3/17/2025, 11:47 AM
@ObserverIO - What does that have to do with the Thanos comparison?
ObserverIO
ObserverIO - 3/17/2025, 11:51 AM
@IAmAHoot - Was that not AI?
ObserverIO
ObserverIO - 3/17/2025, 11:52 AM
The gif I mean.
IAmAHoot
IAmAHoot - 3/17/2025, 12:05 PM
@ObserverIO -

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Luigi
Luigi - 3/17/2025, 12:46 PM
@Feralwookiee - It's most digital artists, background extras and set builders that are going to be replaced, the elite you speak of will thrive
Reginator
Reginator - 3/17/2025, 1:40 PM
@Feralwookiee - well, they just need to learn to code like the pipeline people that were laid off.
McMurdo
McMurdo - 3/17/2025, 2:44 PM
@Feralwookiee - making him a Tony variant is already botching him on a fundamental level.
ToldYaSo
ToldYaSo - 3/17/2025, 3:26 PM
@ObserverIO - Yup. Skynet here we come.
CreateNowSlpL8r
CreateNowSlpL8r - 3/17/2025, 4:08 PM
@Luigi - I agree. The company heads and C level won't self delete themselves. The things my org is already doing with AI are crazy. Need to know excel? Not anymore. Need to write a self evaluation? Not anymore. Need to write an email to an executive showing you know what you are talking about? Not anymore.

The thing is, AI is doing something few expected. Its also a roadblock to advancement because usually the senior level analysts would grow and excel at the skills to move into mgmt positions. On the creative front, its already ruining YouTube. There are tons of people automating videos from prompts including the voice over. You can pick them out but the site is flooded. Tons of YouTubers are already using it for thumbnails so it kind of becomes this issue of keeping up. To script, shoot, edit, post and do thumbnails is time consuming and the big channels pay people for that. This is how it happens. You can't compete because other Youtubers are 3x their output by using AI. Even if you just use it for scripts. Writing a script takes a long time.

Its very sad.

@ObserverIO @Feralwookiee
Feralwookiee
Feralwookiee - 3/17/2025, 6:13 PM
@McMurdo - Absolutely.
Feralwookiee
Feralwookiee - 3/17/2025, 6:22 PM
@Reginator - Lol
True. Maybe they can pick up two part time jobs with no benefits to try to pay the rent like the rest of us have to do when we're replaced by a machine or an algorithm. 😂
Feralwookiee
Feralwookiee - 3/17/2025, 6:24 PM
@Luigi - They won't need ACTORS much longer, and I'd classify those out of touch moonbats as "elite".
Sure, they're not up there with the studio heads and corporate scumshits, but it's a start! 😃
ObserverIO
ObserverIO - 3/17/2025, 6:49 PM
@CreateNowSlpL8r - Preach my internet brother preach.
MisterDoctor217
MisterDoctor217 - 3/17/2025, 11:30 AM
If the movie is really coming out next year, they need to start building hype YESTERDAY!

Hope that F4 has a Doom tease and they release images throughout the year because so far not much interest surrounding the MCU.


I really like Cap 4, but seems general audiences are tired of the MCU, besides a few characters here and there like Wolverine and SpiderMan.
ObserverIO
ObserverIO - 3/17/2025, 11:48 AM
@MisterDoctor217 - As soon as Thunderbolts is over (ad maybe sooner still) they should start promoting the [frick] out of their FF movie. This is way more important to Marvel's future than Thunderbolts. Then as soon as TFF releases they should start building hype for The Avengers: Doomsday.

They could even piggyback on the current real world fears of WWIII with a 'The End of the World is Nigh' campaign.
Apophis71
Apophis71 - 3/17/2025, 11:51 AM
@MisterDoctor217 - There is a risk of starting to build hype too soon, why the norm is for first teaser to be only six months in advance not a year and the youth of today seems to have a lot shorter attention span than mine had so...

...point being start too soon to keep building on it requires increasing amounts of advertising budget, BTS and teasers/trailers and studios tend to have tried and tested formulas for maximum bang for their buck when it comes to building hype. If after the first six months of a year long campaign the reach peak interest, by the end of another 6 months folk could be tiring hearing about it.
BlackStar25
BlackStar25 - 3/17/2025, 1:14 PM
@MisterDoctor217 - Eh? I dont think its all that necessary. Trailer will do way more than some small cameo.
McMurdo
McMurdo - 3/17/2025, 2:46 PM
@MisterDoctor217 - the general audience is tired of superfluous stories and characters that they have no investment in.
RitoRevolto
RitoRevolto - 3/17/2025, 2:54 PM
@MisterDoctor217 - It's way too early. We won't get a teaser until the end of this year/early next year more than likely.
TheVisionary25
TheVisionary25 - 3/17/2025, 11:33 AM
Honestly , I agree with their stance about using AI as a tool that artists themselves always have to remain in control of rather then having it do the job for you so I hope that’s how it remains & nothing more.

Anyway , RDJ has said back in August that bringing him back as Victor Von Doom was Feige’s idea and he had this conversation with the guy about a year or so ago before it was officially announced so we knew that.

Putting aside my reservations about RDJ playing Doom which are moreso about the long term plans for the character , the guy is indeed one of the best actors in the world so it is personally exciting to see him play a different character then Tony…

Plus from a meta storytelling perspective , I do like the poetic symmetry of the man that portrayed the universes’s savior is now the multiverse’s biggest threat even if he thinks of himself as a hero which is very Doom imo.

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Corruptor
Corruptor - 3/17/2025, 11:34 AM
RDJ, bless him, turned Tony Stark into RDJ. Will he do the same with Doom....

Would have been much cheaper with AI.
ObserverIO
ObserverIO - 3/17/2025, 11:50 AM
@Corruptor - I mean he didn't turn Strauss into RDJ, so I think we'll be fine. Probably.
Jackraow21
Jackraow21 - 3/17/2025, 11:38 AM
I'm excited for this. Glad they won't try for a paint-by-numbers recreation of either the 1985 Secret Wars or the 2015 Secret Wars, but will instead borrow from those and make it its own thing which furthers the overall MCU narrative in a focused way. They're saying all the right things to get me excited for this. Hoping it's a return to form for the MCU, or at least closer to the good stuff we've had in recent years (e.g., Spider-man No Way Home, Deadpool & Wolverine) versus the misses, which have been many IMO (Eternals, Dr. Strange 2, Quantumania, The Marvels, etc.). I think it will be.
HulkisHoly
HulkisHoly - 3/17/2025, 11:57 AM
I have a bad feeling that Doom will indeed be a Stark variant who thinks he saving the world by doing something bad: aka Thanos.
But Doom isn’t like that. (Neither is Thanos in the comics to be fair) but do we really need Doom to be another Thanos?

I’m expecting a cliche spider man and Doom convo about how the Stark of 616 sacrifices himself for the world.

Of course this is all coming out of my butt but it’s the vibe in getting from what the Russos keep saying.
McMurdo
McMurdo - 3/17/2025, 2:47 PM
@HulkisHoly - the Russos all but confirmed he is a variant in that recent interview saying Downey being cast as the villain is a part of the story.
HulkisHoly
HulkisHoly - 3/17/2025, 6:04 PM
@McMurdo -

Sheesh

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DarthOmega
DarthOmega - 3/17/2025, 12:05 PM
Bit of an AI rant incoming:

I remember watching shows like Movie Magic and Behind the Scenes when I was a kid in the 90s. It was so interesting watching a film's vfx come together. Then at some point most of the episodes were just computer generated vfx. Arguably not as cool as practical but it was clear where things were headed.

I see that happening with AI it's an obvious progression that's not going away. These studios aren't making the same kinda money. Believe me in the not too distant future, you can prompt the words...

"Optimus Prime crashes through a building"

and it will look indistinguishable if not much better than anything produced so far. The lighting, the motion, the character model, the scale will all be perfect. Now let's say you're a movie studio. You're not making any profit on these films. You have a choice. Write a prompt that takes me seconds and I can get instant results for free, or pay an entire VFX team for months, to even years of work.

Which will you choose? Keep in mind it's still a business.

Of course creativity is preferred. If I know a team of talented people actually worked hard to bring a character to life I would enjoy it more. I always thought people would get tired of CG and move back to practical, but the audience stopped caring.

Once we saw humans walk among dinosaurs, Davey Jones's tentacles, Gollum searching for his precious, apes riding on horseback, and a purple alien take on a green rage monster and a talking raccoon and all of it look convincing and suspension of disbelief is achieved you have to ask yourself what is the filmmakers goal? If it was to make you emotionally involved in the characters, then mission accomplished.

How you accomplish that mission might become irrelevant in the future to a growing audience of young viewers. VFX are tools. None of it is real. AI is a tool as well. I could hire a team of men to dig dirt or I could hire one guy with an excavator.

AI will always be frowned upon. And rightly so in many ways. But it's a tool, as long as we keep it as a tool we should be fine.
vectorsigma
vectorsigma - 3/17/2025, 12:13 PM
Ne Zha 2 is on a different level. Watch it

PS. Im not chinese.
AllsNotGood
AllsNotGood - 3/17/2025, 12:13 PM
I can think of 100 actors better suited for this role
RolandD
RolandD - 3/17/2025, 1:03 PM
As @IAmAHoot said, he’s in good company.
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bkmeijer1
bkmeijer1 - 3/17/2025, 2:47 PM
Said it before, but I really expect Doomsday to be Time Runs Out from the perspective of Doom. Here's hoping him being three dimensional doesn't mean he doesn't stay masked.
dragon316
dragon316 - 3/17/2025, 3:25 PM
Ai shouldn’t be used at all for people jobs fans don’t like it for comics it shouldn’t be used in entertainment
ToldYaSo
ToldYaSo - 3/17/2025, 3:33 PM
@ vector - I'm taking a bong hit every time you mention Ne Zha.
Yer killin' me...
Typhoon20
Typhoon20 - 3/17/2025, 3:41 PM
I'll say this about AI. Ultimately the people will decide wether it'll be used or not.
For personal use I think it's fantastic. Too many times ChatGPT helped me solve issues I couldn't find an answer for on my own. But I can also see the bad that corporations/governments can do with such power. AI will definately negatively impact jobs and such and it can be really scary. And with Orange clowns in charge that WILL be a certainty.

Also really hate when RDJ gets too much power. It's usually a bad thing. He's ok when he's a small part of a bigger picture but they bend over backwards too much for someone that served its purpose. I'm ok with actors returning to their original role. But having a major actor/character be played again by a different character is dumb asf.
Fargrim
Fargrim - 3/17/2025, 9:42 PM
I don't think Doom would ever take his mask off, nor let it come off so really all we should have is RDJ as the voice and never see his face except maybe before he becomes Doom.
TMW1987ProudProWrestlingFan
TMW1987ProudProWrestlingFan - 3/18/2025, 3:58 AM
@Fargrim - Before he becomes Doom & for the inevitable Doom/Peter Face off. If they did just those 2 scenes & kept him in the mask for the rest of the movies, all good. But they're not gonna do that with RDJ.

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