During San Diego Comic-Con 2024, Marvel broke the internet by revealing that Robert Downey Jr. will portray the role of Doctor Doom in the highly-anticipated Avengers: Doomsday. Ever since that moment, we've all had the same question in mind: Didn't the beloved actor bring Iron Man to life in the Marvel Cinematic Universe already? Why will he portray a different role in the same franchise? While going from being Earth's Mightiest Hero to the multiverse's greatest destructor seems like a task fitting for Downey, some fans couldn't help but worry for a moment.
Marvel's big reveal sparked speculation about the possibility that Doctor Doom would simply be a Tony Stark variant from the multiverse. Fortunately, it has since been confirmed that this isn't the case, and instead, we'll see true Victor Von Doom steal the spotlight in the coming years. But even if anything is possible in the multiverse, the question then becomes: Why two very important characters will share the same face? Well, after months of theories and doubts, we might finally have a concrete answer.
Doctor Doom will use Tony Stark's image to gain the MCU's trust
According to renowned insider MyTimeToShineHello, Victor Von Doom will take advantage of the fact that he looks identical to Tony Stark to gain the trust of other MCU characters. Interestingly enough, we might have already seen a glimpse of this strategy paying off. Leaked Marvel concept art reveals an image that pictures the Ruler of Latveria sitting on his throne, with other heroes right by his side. Doctor Strange, Sue Storm, Franklin Richards, and Yelena Belova are all at the scene, and they don't appear to be fighting against the supervillain.
While the Russo Brothers claimed that the leaked concept art wasn't from either Avengers: Doomsday or Secret Wars, it was published (and quickly taken down) by artist Mushk Rizvi who has worked on many other MCU projects such as Ms. Marvel — meaning there has to be some truth behind it. Furthermore, heroes such as Doctor Strange and Yelena Belova are very "pragmatic", which means they could definitely support Doom's plans if they are in the name of "the greater good".
Depending on how Marvel decides to play its cards, there could be a lot of similarities between Victor Von Doom and Tony Stark. Aside from sharing the same look, both of them are narcissistic geniuses who won't stop at anything to accomplish their goals. During the events of Avengers: Age of Ultron, we saw Tony believe that the end justified the means when creating an advanced android that eventually went rogue. Still, he was a beloved hero who gained the support of Spider-Man, Vision, War Machine, and many more. So there's a chance that history will repeat itself during Avengers: Doomsday.
When Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness was released, it was revealed that the MCU will face an incursion — an apocalyptic-level event where two or more universes collide and only one can survive in the process, yet there's a chance that none of them do. With this in mind, it has been revealed that Doom's way of preventing a multiversal collapse will be to unite all branching timelines in a single place called Battleworld.
While it might seem like the only viable solution to such a dire situation, it can't be denied such a tactic can only bring more problems along the way. After all, it would mean that Doom would be able to literally reshape reality in his image while oppressing anyone who speaks against him or his methods. So a clash between him and some of Earth's Mightiest Heroes would seem inevitable. The only downside? The supervillain's forces could include beloved heroes that were already introduced in the MCU.
Robert Downey Jr's recent Marvel casting wasn't a simple coincidence. The Russo Brothers themselves have teased that Tony Stark's death and Doctor Doom's arc will be related in one way or another. So the idea that it will be used as a means of manipulation could absolutely work on the big screen, and it would make it all the more heartbreaking for audiences to witness. On the bright side, it won't be long before the Ruler of Latveria finally makes his MCU debut and we learn why he'll share the same face as the man who sacrificed his life to save the world in the past.
Avengers: Doomsday will be released on May 1, 2026.