Robert Downey Jr. got the best deal one could get out of his Iron Man tenure. He helped start the MCU and told a complete and very satisfying arc for the superhero across many years. I wouldn’t blame him if he was never in another one of the upcoming Marvel movies ever again. Yet, here he is, back to play Doctor Doom in the latest MCU flick Avengers: Doomsday. And he even picked the new role over Tony Stark when he was just asked to choose? This guy is full of surprises.
RDJ was just in Anaheim, California on August 14 for D23 to promote his Marvel film coming out on the 2026 movie calendar. During an interview, he was asked to pick between Iron Man and Doctor Doom. Here’s how he responded:
It was really weird being the guy — everyone else is hanging out, they’re the good heroes, and I’m [in] this mask and this hood. I’m like, ‘They’re all on one side of the camera, and I guess they’re all mad at me or something.’ But I’ll say this: getting to know [Hayley Atwell] better, all of [mine and Chris Evans’] history, because you’re a legit dude. Because you don’t say yes because you can; it has to feel right. And I think that in Doomsday, what happens with this key relationship is so exciting and unexpected and beautiful. I will say Doom, for now, because I got to really observe what I’ve been missing the whole time, just everybody else.
As Robert Downey Jr shared with Good Morning America, it was “weird” for him to be on the other side of a superhero movie now as a villain. And yet, he did like the change of pace. While shooting Doomsday, he didn’t necessarily like to be the guy all the other characters are against. However, he also ended up enjoying the different perspective, too.
Apparently, being under the helmet allowed him to get to know more of the cast, and really revel in the presence and performances of “everybody else.” I find this to be a super unexpected answer from Downey, and ultimately 20 years from now I have to wonder if he’ll say the same thing. However, I do like his reasoning.
After all, as Iron Man, he probably had a lot more on his shoulders work-wise. Since Doctor Doom seems to be the reason why all the heroes are brought together rather than the main character that Iron Man was, it sounds like RDJ appreciated sitting back a bit more and letting them shine. And the cast is brilliant, so I don’t blame him.
Downey’s words come as D23 debuted a special look at Avengers: Doomsday that was previously only for the eyes of SDCC Marvel Hall H attendees. Check it out:
As we wait for Doomsday, I can’t help but have questions about how RDJ being both Iron Man and Doctor Doom will be handled narratively. Also, who else will be joining the cast that we don’t know about? At D23, Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds had a message that’s making me wonder if they’ll be part of it, too, for example.
We’ll find out officially and get to see Downey in this new role when Avengers:Doomsday hits theaters on December 18.
