Of all the news concerning upcoming Marvel movies that was announced at San Diego Comic-Con last weekend, unquestionably the biggest of the bunch was that Robert Downey Jr. is returning to the MCU! However, rather than reprising Tony Stark/Iron Man, he’ll instead play Doctor Doom, a casting decision that’s drawn mixed reactions from fans. Regardless, credit goes to Downey for keeping the information tightly under wraps until Marvel’s Hall H panel, as Jeremy Renner revealed that even he didn’t know this was coming while reacting to the news about his Avengers co-star.
Renner, who first played Clint Barton/Hawkeye opposite Downey’s Tony in 2012’s The Avengers, discussed this game-changing move while talking with Us Weekly. Like the majority of the population, the Mayor of Kingstown lead didn’t learn about Downey playing Doctor Doom until seeing the news online. In his words:
I had no idea. This son of a bitch didn’t say anything to me, and we’re good friends. There’s the Avengers family chat. The original six. He said not a peep. I got online and started blowing up his phone like, ‘What’s going on? You’ve been hiding this from us the whole time?’ It’s exciting news. I’m really, really excited about it.
Robert Downey Jr. and Jeremy Renner have had a “family chat” going with Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Chris Evans and Mark Ruffalo going for “a long time,” showing that the OG Avengers actors are close in real life rather than just mere coworkers. And yet, Downey didn’t loop these five in ahead of time about playing Doctor Doom, much to Renner’s chagrin. I imagine this had more to do with Downey signing an airtight NDA from Marvel Studios rather than slighting his cohorts. Anyone who follows the MCU news cycle knows that this company doesn’t play when it comes to keeping secrets.
That aside, Renner is among the people who are looking forward to seeing how Downey does as Doctor Doom. While chiefly known as the Fantastic Four’s arch-nemesis, Doom has long been an antagonist who’s clashed with all sorts of heroes in the Marvel universe. Now he’s set to be the main villain in Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars, replacing Kang the Conqueror following Jonathan Majors being fired last December.
It’s been reported that in addition to his new Marvel contract netting over $80 million, a private jet and security detail, Robert Downey Jr.’s biggest condition for playing Doctor Doom was having directors Joe and Anthony Russo helm the next two Avengers movies. Like Downey, the Russos haven’t contributed to the MCU since 2019’s Avengers: Endgame, but now these three are gearing up to help shake things up for these capstone releases in The Multiverse Saga. And while not officially confirmed, that same report also mentioned that Downey will first appear as Doctor Doom in a mid/post-credits scene for 2025’s The Fantastic Four: First Steps.
While we wait for more news about what to expect from Robert Downey Jr.’s Doctor Doom, remember that Renner’s last MCU outing, the Hawkeye miniseries, can be streamed with a Disney+ subscription. If you’d rather see how he does playing Mike McClusky in Mayor of Kingstown, you’ll need a Paramount+ subscription.
