This week saw a pretty wild Avengers: Doomsday fan theory about a possible link between Tony Stark and Victor Von Doom take on a life of its own. What started as little more than fan fiction has since been spread as "rumour," further confusing fans after an endless stream of fake AI images.
Still, with the Multiverse in play and Doctor Doom played by the same actor, Robert Downey Jr., who brought Iron Man to life on screen, it's hard not to wonder about a connection between the two.
Marvel Studios can avoid that by never unmasking Doom; after all, several actors have played more than one character in the MCU, and no one was really fretting about Sersi being Minn-Erva's "Variant." That said, it's still hard to shake the feeling that Tony and Victor being played by the same actor will end up being a major plot point in Avengers: Doomsday.
Yesterday, we shared footage from a recent Disney event in Italy highlighting the movie's massive ensemble (among the reveals was Sam Wilson's Avengers team).
Many fans on social media have since pointed out that Downey is quite clearly labelled as Victor Von Doom/Doctor Doom, going some way in debunking the theories. Well, maybe. We won't know for sure until sitting down to watch Avengers: Doomsday next December.
Doom doesn't need to be linked to Iron Man, but the temptation is surely there for Marvel Studios and the Russo Brothers. Hopefully, the upcoming teaser trailer will put that to rest.
Speaking of which, another of Marvel's international social media accounts has started hyping up Avengers: Doomsday...
Avengers: Doomsday officially stars Chris Hemsworth, Anthony Mackie, Winston Duke, Tom Hiddleston, Sebastian Stan, Letitia Wright, Paul Rudd, and Robert Downey Jr. Wyatt Russell, Simu Liu, Tenoch Huerta Mejia, Florence Pugh, Danny Ramirez, David Harbour, Hannah John-Kamen, and Lewis Pullman all make their Avengers franchise debuts in the movie.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps leads Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Joseph Quinn join them, as do X-Men franchise stars Kelsey Grammer, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Alan Cumming, Rebecca Romijn, James Marsden, with Deadpool & Wolverine star Channing Tatum.
The Russo Brothers direct the movie from a screenplay by Stephen McFeely, with whom they previously collaborated on the Captain America and Avengers franchises. Loki and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness's Michael Waldron is also helping out with the script.
Avengers: Doomsday is set to be released on December 18, 2026, with Avengers: Secret Wars scheduled to arrive on December 17, 2027.