Robert Downey Jr. marked Valentine’s Day with some villainous fun. The Oscar winner shared a Doctor Doom-themed Valentine’s Day card to his 57.1 million Instagram followers, complete with a box of chocolates inside the Marvel villain’s iconic mask. As all moviegoers know, Downey is returning to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Doom in 2026’s “Avengers: Doomsday.”
Downey helped birth the MCU by playing Tony Stark in 2008’s “Iron Man,” the first installment in the long-running film universe. The actor would go on to reprise the superhero in 10 Marvel films over the next 11 years, including two standalone “Iron Man” sequels and four “Avengers” movies. The character died in 2019’s “Avengers: Endgame,” making Downey’s return as a different character, Doctor Doom, all the more surprising. Downey revealed his Doom casting to much shock and awe at Comic-Con last year.
“Avengers: Doomsday” will also mark the return of longtime Marvel directors Joe and Anthony Russo, the duo behind “Endgame” and other Marvel blockbusters. The directors and Downey are set to tell an epic multiverse story across 2026’s “Doomsday” and 2027’s “Avengers: Secret Wars.” The former title is going into production this year.
Downey’s MCU return as Doom sent shockwaves not only through the Marvel fandom but also among his former Marvel cast members. Jeremy Renner told US Weekly that Downey did not give any of the original “Avengers” stars a heads up about his return.
“No! I had no idea. The son of a bitch didn’t say anything to me,” Renner said. “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.”
One Marvel star who did know about Downey’s plan was Tom Holland, hardly a surprise given the close connection between Downey’s Tony Stark and Holland’s Peter Parker across several Marvel movies.
“I’ve been speaking to [Robert Downey Jr.] a lot, especially about him making his [Marvel] return, which is super exciting,” Holland said on the “Rich Roll“ podcast last fall. “That was a tough secret to sit on because I have a reputation for ruining things and I strategically have done no press.”
“Doctor Strange” star Benedict Cumberbatch spoke to Variety earlier this year about Downey’s return, revealing that he immediately grabbed his phone to message Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige after the news went public.
“I texted, ‘What the fuck?’ and then quickly added, ‘Good what-the-fuck. I mean, good what-the-fuck,’” Cumberbatch said.
“Avengers: Doomsday” is set to release in theaters May 1, 2026 from Disney and Marvel Studios.
