Robert Downey Jr. breaks his silence on his Doctor Doom casting – and the three questions that sparked his Marvel return

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"How do we not disappoint expectations?"

Robert Downey Jr announces his Doctor Doom casting at San Diego Comic-Con 2024
(Image credit: Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images)

A month after it was first announced, Robert Downey Jr. has opened up on his Marvel casting as Doctor Doom in the next two Avengers movies.

While speaking on The Hollywood Reporter's Awards Chatter podcast, Downey outlined the initial conversation he had with Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige about returning.

"How can we not go backwards? How do we not disappoint expectations? How can we continue to beat expectations?" Downey said of the three questions posited by Feige that fueled the philosophy behind bringing back the MCU legacy actor. 

Downey continued, "[Feige] brought up Victor von Doom and I looked into his character and I go, 'Wow'. He goes: 'Let's get Victor von Doom right. Let's get that right.'"

Downey's Doctor Doom is set to appear in 2026's Avengers: Doomsday and 2027's Avengers: Secret Wars alongside the casts of Fantastic Four and Thunderbolts. 

A recent report, however, suggested that the villain would appear slightly sooner than expected – in 2025's standalone Fantastic Four movie.

Before then, we're heading back to Westview this September in Agatha All Along, featuring the return of Kathryn Hahn's meddlesome witch. There's also Captain America: Brave New World, Daredevil: Born Again, and Ironheart in the pipeline as part of Marvel Phase 5.

For more, check out the complete list of upcoming Marvel movies and shows currently in the weeks. If you're still playing catch up (or are rewatching the MCU from start to finish) then you'll need our guide on how to watch the Marvel movies in order.

Bradley Russell
Bradley Russell

I'm the Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, focusing on news, features, and interviews with some of the biggest names in film and TV. On-site, you'll find me marveling at Marvel and providing analysis and room temperature takes on the newest films, Star Wars and, of course, anime. Outside of GR, I love getting lost in a good 100-hour JRPG, Warzone, and kicking back on the (virtual) field with Football Manager. My work has also been featured in OPM, FourFourTwo, and Game Revolution.