History of Doctor Doom & How Robert Downey Jr.'s Interpretation Could Take Shape

The world was thrown into a spiral this past Saturday night at San Diego Comic Con when it was announced that Robert Downey Jr. will be starring as Doctor Dom in Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars. Doomsday will air in May of 2026, while the long awaited Secret Wars film will premier in May of the following year. This was rumored for the week leading up to SDCC, and while I was a little uneasy about it, I’m fine with it… IF, Downey Jr. isn’t Doom for years to come. There is a version of Doctor Doom in the multiverse, directly tied to the 2015 ‘Secret Wars’ comic arc, which I believe Downey Jr. will be playing, God Emperor Doom. I will get to this later on!

Having Downey Jr. as a multiversal variant of Doom for, presumably an end credits scene for next summer’s Fantastic Four movie and the two Avengers sequels, would be fine. Seeing Downey Jr. as a really interesting and complex character like Victor von Doom is exciting, past Marvel Cinematic Universe history aside. This choice just goes to show that anyone in the MCU can be anybody. John Krasinski was briefly Reed Richards, now Pedro Pascal is playing him. Chris Evans was Captain America, Deadpool & Wolverine made his Johnny “Human Torch” Storm MCU canon thanks to the Void. Mahershala Ali is Blade in the MCU, Deadpool & Wolverine made Wesley Snipes’ Blade multiverse canon as well.

Having the same characters around, with different faces, is a fascinating concept and is quite intriguing all the same. Doctor Doom is arguably the most popular villain in Marvel Comics history, and he just so happens to be one of my top three favorite characters in all of Marvel. A few powers that Doom has that would be wonderful to see in the MCU, which haven’t been done in his THREE previous live-action appearances, are: generating force fields, levitation, using magic to block hero’s powers, healing himself with magic, manipulating time with his Time Platforms, and just MAGIC IN GENERAL. Fun fact; the Time Platforms were used by Reed Richards in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

Many aren’t aware that Doom rules the fictitious country of Latveria, where he has an armada of soldiers/mercenaries at his command. Many also don’t realize that Doom is a highly gifted sorcerer whose mystical abilities rival that of Doctor Strange, and surpass even Wong’s. Doom’s mother Cynthia died when he was a baby and his ruthless father rose Doom to be his successor, which Doom never wanted. He went to the U.S. to study at M.I.T. where he befriended Reed Richards and two grew a tight bond, while also doing many science projects together.

After graduating, Doom went back to Latveria, rummaged through his mother’s things, and that’s where it all started. He found a secret room with dozens of spell books and he soon found out that his mom was a high-ranking sorceress who sold her soul to Mephisto (Marvel’s Devil in the comics) in exchange for more power. Little did he know, at the time, that she went mad with power and ended up killing dozens of people, including women and children in a rage. She was deeply distraught by this, and committed suicide which led for her soul to be enslaved by Mephisto in Hell. Doom read all of her books in a night, mastering magic in the process, and became hellbent on freeing his mother years after. He’s a genius scientist, and has a vast intellect of the mystic arts as well, and it’ll be really fun to see a character like that, who has both magic and tech up their arsenal.

Latveria is a fascinating country, which is a made-up country somewhere in Europe, near the other fictitious Marvel country, Sokovia. Latveria has had a pretty tumultuous history in its 700+ year history. Many wars and countless leaders who weren’t respected at all. Doom never wanted to be King, and the “heir to Latveria” was a title that he was upset about. After his accident which left him horrifically disfigured, he went back to Latveria to run the country and became its savior since the decades-long persecution of his people came to end, thanks to him.

Latveria and Wakanda have been at odds many times before, including the classic ‘Doomwar’ where Doom invaded Wakanda for its vibranium, causing a war between the two nations. This is a storyline that I would love to see on Earth-616 (the prime MCU earth) eventually. Doctor Doom has always been among the most imposing threats in the Marvel Universe. Few villains rival his malevolent power, and even they know to approach the ruler of Latveria with caution.

Doom is mainly a Fantastic Four villain, but, he’s fought nearly every major Marvel superhero, including the Avengers, the X-Men and Doctor Strange. Doom rarely faces defeat thanks to him thinking several moves ahead of his opponents, and having computer-assisted armor which is nuclear-powered and forged by magic. Doom has always had an obsession with power and becoming stronger, which is what led him to becoming a sorcerer in the first place, and grew his internal rivalry with his best friend, Reed Richards.

Doom’s conquest in becoming stronger only increased his desire for more power. After realizing that ruling Latveria was for the best, and a power play for himself; Doom wanted to rule the world. Doom has no innate superpowers because what he has, he obtained through sorcery and technology. Doom's culmination of power as God Emperor Doom, results from a craving for power that destroyed the multiverse itself.

In the epic ‘Secret Wars’ storyline from 2015 by Jonathan Hickman and Esad Ribic, the multiverse perishes following the final collision of the Marvel Universe (Earth-616) and the Ultimate Universe (Earth-1610). Doctor Doom however, steals the power of a group of alien beings called the Beyonders and creates his own "Battleworld" from the remnants of different worlds throughout the multiverse. Battelworld is what the Beyonders would do for fun; plucking heroes and villains out of their universes in the multiverse and pitting them against themselves in a battle to the death on a giant asteroid-like planet.

Doom enslaves Molecule Man (who can warp reality and change the molecular structure of anything), becoming "God Emperor Doom," ruler of Battleworld. For the next eight-years Doctor Doom twists the memories of Battleworld's residents until they can no longer remember life before Battleworld. He rules alongside his sheriff, Doctor Strange, and replaces Reed Richards by marrying Sue Storm and becoming the father of Franklin and Valeria (Reed's children). Johnny Storm is exiled, becoming this world's sun, and The Thing becomes the wall to protect Battleworld's perimeter. The Future Foundation (the Ultimate Universe’s Fantastic Four) also become Doom's science division. The God Emperor even commands a police force comprising of Thors from across the multiverse dubbed the "Thor Corps," who enforce Doom's law.

Even after the arrival of the life raft (which contains survivors from Earth-616), Doctor Doom's power doesn't stop. He easily murders a Phoenix force-powered Cyclops, rips out Thanos' skeleton, and even defeats an Infinity Gauntlet-wielding Black Panther. However, the heroes were a distraction, allowing their universe’s Molecule Man the time he needed to strip Doom of some of his power. This enables Reed Richards to defeat his nemesis in combat and restores the multiverse, ending the reign of God Emperor Doom.

Following this beautiful story, Brian Michael Bendis and Alex Maleev wrote ‘Infamous Iron Man’ where they had Doctor Doom in a post-Secret Wars landscape. Since his pursuit of power had left him unfulfilled, Doctor Doom tries to become a hero. He takes on the Iron Man mantle with a special armor that allows him to employ his expertise in science and magic. Seeing Doom in this light was fascinating, taking the classic Marvel character in a much different direction.

Doom’s path to redemption was a massive uphill battle though, with S.H.I.E.L.D. and countless heroes refusing to give him a second chance. Despite Doom's efforts to become a better person, he eventually slithered back to his villainous ways in Dan Slott and Sara Pichelli's ‘Fantastic Four’ relaunch, and he’s been a villain ever since.

This is where I strongly believe the MCU will go with Doomsday and Secret Wars, having Downey Jr. as a Doctor Doom variant in God Emperor Doom. Perhaps though, killing him to signify this version of the character is done, and that we’ll get the Earth-616 Victor von Doom eventually (if he isn’t teased beforehand.) This could also be where we see the last of the multiverse, in large-scale stories at least, in the MCU. The reception of the “Multiverse Saga” hasn’t been nearly as beloved as the “Infinity Saga” was, so maybe Kevin Feige, the Russo brothers, Nate Moore and company want to wrap it up sooner rather than later. The possibilities are truly endless when it comes to the multiverse though, so time will tell!