We've known since D23 that Robert Downey Jr.'s Doctor Doom will have a second costume in Avengers: Doomsday, and Hot Toys has now confirmed that it's releasing a 1/6th-scale figure based on the design.
A full reveal is coming soon, but in the meantime, we have a teaser that showcases what is clearly meant to be Marvel Studios' take on Doom's classic, Jack Kirby-designed costume. This is clearly what the villain was wearing during The Fantastic Four: First Steps' mid-credits scene, and while it looks a little less menacing, it still raises a big question.
Why does Doom have two costumes? Trailers have made it clear that Marvel Studios isn't hiding the fact that Victor Von Doom is Avengers: Doomsday's big bad, meaning no one will be shocked when he sheds this armour for the slightly more sinister version and attacks the Multiverse's Mightiest Heroes.
Disney may have considered presenting Doom as a "hero" and saving his villainous turn as a twist for the movie itself. The studio likely realised that it was a pointless endeavour, though it's just as feasible that the Russos wanted to pay homage to Doom's original comic book look.
"We didn't want to just bring Tony Stark back. The ending of Avengers: Endgame was one of our proudest moments, seeing audiences worldwide react to Tony's sacrifice, so we didn't want him to just return 'magically,'" Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige previously explained. "But in Marvel, there are many opportunities to see actors return in new ways."
"When we were casting for Doctor Doom, we said: we need to find the greatest actor in the world. Doctor Doom is one of the most interesting characters. He's intelligent, has an extremely high IQ; he can be a villain, but he also sees himself as a hero. We went to see Oppenheimer—for which he won an Oscar—and we finally realized."
"Just like when we were casting Captain America, we didn't want to exclude Chris Evans just because he'd played other Marvel characters, and in this situation, we thought: how great, bold, and risky it would be to bring back our most famous hero to play our most famous villain. Thank goodness, he agreed," Feige concluded.
Check out Hot Toys' latest Avengers: Doomsday teaser in the Instagram post below.
In Avengers: Doomsday, beloved heroes from three distinct universes will be set on a deadly collision course and face an existential threat unlike anything they’ve ever encountered.
Avengers: Doomsday stars Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Anthony Mackie, Winston Duke, Tom Hiddleston, Sebastian Stan, Letitia Wright, Paul Rudd, and Robert Downey Jr. Wyatt Russell, Simu Liu, Tenoch Huerta Mejia, Mabel Cadena, Florence Pugh, Danny Ramirez, David Harbour, Hannah John-Kamen, Lewis Pullman, India Rose Hemsworth, and Wesley Holloway all make their Avengers franchise debuts.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps leads Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Joseph Quinn join them, as do X-Men franchise stars Kelsey Grammer, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Alan Cumming, Rebecca Romijn, James Marsden, with Deadpool & Wolverine star Channing Tatum.
The Russo Brothers direct Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars from a screenplay by Stephen McFeely, with whom they previously collaborated on the Avengers and Captain America franchises. The movie is produced by Kevin Feige, Louis D'Esposito, and Jonathan Schwartz, with Callum McDougall serving as executive producer.
Avengers: Doomsday is set to be released on December 18.