Marvel’s Kevin Feige and the Russos tee up the arrival of Downey’s Doom.

Avengers: Doomsday team on recasting Robert Downey Jr. as iconic villain: ‘His power is so immense and so beyond’ (exclusive)

Marvel's Kevin Feige and the Russos tee up the arrival of Downey's Doom.

By Nick Romano

Nick Romano

Nick Romano is a senior editor at ** with 15 years of journalism experience covering entertainment. His work previously appeared in Vanity Fair, Vulture, IGN, and more.

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April 17, 2026 5:23 p.m. ET

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Robert Downey Jr. at CinemaCon 2026 for 'Avengers: Doomsday'. Credit:

David Becker/Getty

- Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige discusses recasting Robert Downey Jr. in the MCU for *Avengers: Doomsday*.

- Directors Joe and Anthony Russo tease the power level of Victor Von Doom.

- "He played the most iconic hero. Let's have him play the most iconic villain."

According to Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige, "we never lost touch with Downey" since he left the MCU.

Robert Downey Jr. ended his 11-year run as Tony Stark/Iron Man in 2019's *Avengers: Endgame*, which concluded with that billionaire tech genius' death by snap. "He is ingrained in the fabric of the MCU for obvious reasons, and we would talk about when and how and if there could be a return," Feige tells ** out of CinemaCon in Las Vegas.

Roughly three-and-a-half years ago, the architects of this interconnected superhero universe came to the idea of bringing Doctor Victor Von Doom to the screen.

"At the time, [Downey] was on his way to winning the Academy Award for *Oppenheimer* and there was every story about 'the greatest actor in the world,' and we thought, 'This could be it. Let's do it,'" Feige continues. "It's our universe. It's a multiverse. We can do whatever the heck we want. He played the most iconic hero. Let's have him play the most iconic villain."

Chris Evans as Steve Rogers in 'Avengers: Doomsday'.

Marvel Entertainment/YouTube

Directed by Joe and Anthony Russo, who helmed some of the biggest Marvel movies for the studio over the years, the new film *Avengers: Doomsday* will feature heroes from three distinct universes on a deadly collision course as they face an existential threat unlike anything they’ve ever encountered.

The Russos tease the power that Doom packs. "Certainly with Doom, it's the problem in the extreme in that his power is so immense and so beyond. But that really liberates us all on a creative level, artistic level, to figure out where the complexities and the vulnerabilities are in the character," Anthony Russo says. "They may have seemingly unlimited physical power, but there is something inside them where they are vulnerable, where they are exposed, where [there are] places that they need to protect even more intently than their physical selves. So I think the real fun of the storytelling is in that zone there."

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The confirmed cast (so far) runs the gamut from the original *Avengers*, *Black Panther*, *Captain America: Brave New World*, *Thunderbolts**/*New Avengers*, *The Fantastic Four*, and the original *X-Men* (of the 20th Century Fox era).

Chris Evans, who will return as Steve Rogers, appeared at CinemaCon alongside Downey, Feige, and the Russos. Previously released teasers highlighted Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Ebon Moss-Bachrach as the Thing/Ben Grimm, Ian McKellen as Magneto, James Marsden as Cyclops, Patrick Stewart as Professor Xavier, Letitia Wright as Shuri, Winston Duke as M'Baku, and Tenoch Huerta Mejia as Namor.

Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Evans at CinemaCon 2026 for 'Avengers: Doomsday'.

Monica Schipper/Getty

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Footage screened in Vegas for CinemaCon (that hasn't been released online) highlighted Simu Liu as Shang-Chi battling Channing Tatum as Gambit; Rebecca Romijn's shapeshifting Mystique fighting Florence Pugh's Yelena; and a meeting between the Fantastic Four (including Pedro Pascal's Reed Richards, Vanessa Kirby's Sue Storm, and Joseph Quinn's Johnny Storm), Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan), Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie), and Scott Lang (Paul Rudd).

Also confirmed for the cast are Wyatt Russell (John Walker), Tom Hiddleston (Loki), David Harbour (Alexei Shostakov), Lewis Pullman (Robert Reynolds), Kelsey Grammer (Hank McCoy), Danny Ramirez (Joaquin Torres), Alan Cumming (Kurt Wagner), Wesley Holloway (undisclosed role), Hannah John-Kamen (Ava Starr), Alex Livinalli (Attuma), Mabel Cadena (Namora), and Kathryn Newton (Cassie Lang).

*Avengers: Doomsday* is on track to premiere in theaters on Dec. 18.

*—With reporting from Gerrad Hall.*

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