“Thank god they were wrong”: MCU Fans Hilariously Guessed 2 Highly Disliked Superhero Actors Could Be Playing Doctor Doom Right Before Robert Downey Jr.’s Reveal
- The internet is abuzz with the news about the two upcoming Avengers movies.
- Fans had been guessing Jared Leto or Ben Affleck to play the role of Doctor Doom.
- Iron Man and Doctor Doom have some history, which makes one wonder if Robert Downey Jr.'s return is just because.
Although it’s a little far from now, the MCU is going to release Avengers: Doomsday in 2026. The action-adventure superhero movie is set to be directed by the Russo Brothers, who have previously directed masterpieces like Extraction, The Gray Man, Avengers: Infinity War, and Avengers: Endgame.
What’s more interesting about Avengers: Doomsday is its casting, as revealed to the public at the San Diego Comic-Con recently. The speculation game is always on between Marvel and its fans, among whom, some picked two infamous superhero actors they thought could be possible candidates to play the character of Doctor Doom. However, the franchise pulled a UNO Reverse on them by casting one of the most beloved superhero actors as this new villain.
Fans’ Guesses for Doctor Doom Casting Were Two of the Most Infamous Superhero Actors
There has been a lot of discussion going on about who would play the role of Doctor Doom in MCU’s upcoming 2026 movie, Avengers: Doomsday. When the franchise revealed the man behind the Doctor Doom mask, people realized that their guesses were nowhere close to reality.
To everyone’s surprise, Robert Downey Jr. was revealed to be Doctor Doom (via Film Updates on X) which marks his comeback into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. As soon as RDJ revealed himself by pulling out the mask, the fans screamed in joy. No one in their wildest dreams had imagined this plot twist.
Before this revelation, some fans were guessing that Doctor Doom could be played by Jared Leto or Ben Affleck, who played Joker and Batman in the DCU respectively. The speculation found their graves with RDJ’s surprising return to the superhero franchise. Some were even grateful that the speculation did not turn into reality.
The thing about this decision to bring RDJ back into the picture is that this is a ‘go-home or go-big’ situation. Considering he has played one of the most beloved superheroes of all time, having him star as a villain has to make sense or things may go sideways for the franchise’s already dwindling reputation.
Does Robert Downey Jr.’s Former MCU Character Have Anything to Do With the New One?
Although there’s an overpowering wind of excitement in the atmosphere after RDJ’s return to the MCU as Doctor Doom was announced, people are in a dilemma regarding this completely unexpected move by Marvel. It is worth noting that the two characters have a shared history.
Doctor Doom and Iron Man have met back in time and have a history of their own, whether it’s the 1981 comic storyline Doomquest or the major faceoff in 2007’s Mighty Avengers. However, it’s not like they have always been enemies. In fact, Doctor Doom played a supporting character in 2015’s Invincible Iron Man, although Stark never really trusted him.
Apart from all this, it’s also worth noting that in the Marvel multiverse, some versions of Doctor Doom are indeed Tony Stark. One of these versions is Iron Maniac, which was introduced in 2004’s Marvel Team-Up #3. All these events are worth considering while solving the mystery of RDJ’s return to the MCU as Doctor Doom.
