This past Saturday during Marvel Studios' Dan Diego Comic-Con panel, we learned that Robert Downey Jr. will return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as a brand-new(?) character after leading the franchise as Tony Stark from 2008's Iron Man right up until Avengers: Endgame in 2019.
The announcement came after a persistent rumor that the Oppenheimer actor might be set to play a Tony Stark Variant who went down a dark path and became Doctor Doom, and we got confirmation that he will indeed debut as the iconic villain in Avengers: Doomsday (formerly titled The Kang Dynasty).
The Academy Award-winner was introduced as "Victor Von Doom" during the SDCC panel, but we still don't know if he'll be playing the Doctor Doom (he could simply change his name to disguise his real identity) who just happens to bear a striking resemblance to the Armored Avenger, or an evil multiverse version of Stark.
Either way, fans seemed to be pretty mixed on the news.
We recently asked CBM readers how they felt about Downey making his MCU return as Doom, and the results are in. We knew you guys would have some strong opinions on this, and with 4541 votes, 50% of you are "willing to wait and see how it's handled," while 31% "hate it," and 19% "love it."
While the jury is still out for half of you until more details are revealed, it's probably safe to say that this was not one of the studio's most popular announcements!
Avengers: Doomsday arrives in theaters on May 1, 2026, followed by Avengers: Secret Wars on May 7, 2027. Both films will be directed by the Russo brothers, who also make their MCU return after helming Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.
"Being able to create stories and explore characters within the Marvel Universe fulfilled a life-long dream of ours, and we discovered a powerful connection with audiences in each film that we made. We’re thrilled to collaborate once again with Kevin, Lou and the entire Marvel team to bring this epic adventure in storytelling to new and surprising places for both the fans and ourselves”, said The Russos in a statement after the SDCC panel.
Have another look at some photos Downey Jr. shared to Instagram after the big reveal below.