Robert Downey Jr. Had 'Already Met' with Marvel for Doctor Doom Role in 2005’s “Fantastic Four” Before “Iron Man”

‘Iron Man’ director Jon Favreau and producer Kevin Feige recalled almost casting Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom in 2005’s ‘Fantastic Four’

Robert Downey Jr. was doomed to join Marvel movies from the start.

Long before revealing he’ll play Victor von Doom a.k.a. Doctor Doom in the next two Avengers movies, the Oppenheimer Oscar winner, 59, was reportedly in talks to play the character in 2005’s Fantastic Four.

In a 2023 video Marvel Entertainment debuted featuring a retrospective interview between actor-director Jon Favreau and Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige, the latter confirmed that as Fantastic Four’s producer, he “had already met with [Downey] for Doctor Doom.”

Related: Marvel Stars React to Robert Downey Jr.’s Return to the MCU — Including Gwyneth Paltrow, Mark Ruffalo and More

While determining casting for 2008’s Iron Man, “I remember that Robert had come in for a general [meeting],” said Favreau, 57, indicating that the actor had been in the mix for previous projects featuring Marvel Comics characters: Fantastic Four and 2007’s Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, which Feige, 51, produced. 

Julian McMahon won the part of Doctor Doom in the first Fantastic Four film, which starred Ioan Gruffudd, Jessica Alba, Chris Evans and Michael Chiklis as the superheroic foursome. (A new movie starring Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach and Joseph Quinn, to take place within the official Marvel Cinematic Universe, comes to theaters July 25, 2025.)

It was Iron Man, directed by Favreau and produced by Feige, that launched what would become the MCU. “I remember sitting down with [Downey], and I was like, ‘Jeez, he’s just got that spark in him, in his eye, and he’s just ready,’” Favreau told Feige in the video. “That’s when we were in your office and we were pointing to his headshot, saying, ‘We gotta try to figure this out.’” Soon after casting Downey, he added, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jeff Bridges and other costars signed on.

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At San Diego Comic-Con on Saturday, July 27, Downey revealed himself on the Hall H stage, confirming he’ll play the iconic Doctor Doom in the next two Avengers movies, 2026's Avengers: Doomsday and 2027's Avengers: Secret Wars. Feige’s Marvel Studios presentation also unveiled those movies’ directors: former Avengers helmers Anthony and Joe Russo.

Related: Marvel's Kevin Feige on Not Recasting Chadwick Boseman's Black Panther Role: 'It Was Much Too Soon'

The directors said onstage that "there is one very important character required to do Secret Wars justice," and teased that they needed "the greatest actor in the world.” When Downey emerged from behind a mask and robes, he quipped, “New mask, same task. What did I tell ya? I like playing complicated characters."

Downey played Tony Stark a.k.a Iron Man in 10 big-screen installments, culminating in the character’s death in 2019’s Avengers: Endgame. He’ll reappear in the MCU as Doctor Doom in Avengers: Doomsday, in theaters May 1, 2026.

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