Doctor Doom’s Third MCU Cameo Makes Robert Downey Jr. Tie Avengers History Record
Three scenes introduce Doctor Doom
Robert Downey Jr. is set to return to the MCU as Doctor Doom in two upcoming films, taking on a villainous role after playing Iron Man. His character has appeared in three scenes that build toward his larger part.
Doom first appeared in a post-credits scene in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, showing interest in Franklin, the infant son of Reed Richards and Sue Storm. A later Avengers: Endgame Encore scene showed Doom visiting Bruce Banner in an underground bunker and saying he had come to collect him. VisionQuest’s post-credits scene showed Doom awakening and recruiting the Scarlet Witch, who was believed to have died in 2022’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
A record shared with Thanos
The three appearances put Doom level with Thanos for pre-film MCU cameos tied to the Avengers’ leading villains. Thanos appeared in post-credits scenes in 2012’s The Avengers and 2015’s Avengers: Age of Ultron, as well as cameo scenes in Guardians of the Galaxy.
Those appearances led into Thanos’ role in Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. Doom’s scenes are intended to set up Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars.
Comparing the wider setup
Some criticism of Avengers: Doomsday has focused on Doom receiving less advance setup than Thanos. The comparison is complicated, the article argues, because viewers may conflate Thanos’ appearances with the Infinity Stones, which featured across many films in the Infinity Saga.
The multiverse, central to the plots of Doomsday and Secret Wars, has also featured extensively in MCU stories since 2019. Together with Doom’s three appearances, that broader storyline challenges the claim that the character has had less groundwork than Thanos, despite Marvel’s late shift away from Kang the Conqueror.
Key points
- Doctor Doom has appeared in three MCU scenes before his main role.
- His three appearances tie the pre-film cameo record held by Thanos.
- Doom’s scenes point toward Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars.
- The multiverse has featured extensively in MCU stories since 2019.