Robert Downey Jr. is officially returning to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but he won’t be playing Iron Man again. Instead, the Oscar-winning actor is bringing to life the iconic Marvel villain Doctor Doom in a new “Avengers” movie titled “Avengers: Doomsday,” which will lead directly into “Avengers: Secret Wars.” Both movies will be helmed by the Russo Brothers, who directed Downey as Iron in Marvel’s blockbusters “Captain America: Civil War,” “Avengers: Infinity War” and “Avengers: Endgame.”
Whether or not Downey is playing a variant of Tony Stark who became Doctor Doom in the MCU’s multiverse (which appears likely) or the real Victor von Doom from the comics remains to be seen, but one person who seems surprised by the actor’s Marvel return is his former co-star Gwyneth Paltrow.
“I don’t get it, are you a baddie now?” Paltrow asked in the comments section of Downey’s Instagram post announcing his return to Marvel as Doctor Doom.
The Russo Brothers added in the same comments section: “We’ve always said green is your color…”
Paltrow has been friends with Downey for well over a decade, after the two were cast as Tony Stark and Pepper Potts in 2008’s “Iron Man,” which kicked off the Marvel Cinematic Universe. They went on to headline two more standalone “Iron Man” films together and appeared side by side in several other Marvel movies, from “Spider-Man: Homecoming” to “Avengers: Infinity War” and more.
Both actors last appeared in the Marvel Cinematic Universe in 2019’s “Avengers: Endgame,” which notably featured the death of Downey’s Iron Man. During a Q&A with fans on Instagram last year, Paltrow said her time with Marvel was probably over because “why do you need Pepper Potts without Iron Man?”
Now that Downey is returning to Marvel, might there be room for Paltrow to return as well? It’s anyone’s guess as he isn’t coming back as Iron Man. Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige said last December that it was important for the MCU not to screw with Iron Man’s death in “Avengers: Endgame.”
“We all worked very hard for many years to get to that, and we would never want to magically undo it in any way,” he told Vanity Fair at the time.
But this year Downey was quite open in interviews about his interest in rejoining Marvel. Speaking to Esquire magazine after his Oscar win for “Oppenheimer,” the actor was asked if he would ever return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe now that he is officially an Academy Award winner. The actor didn’t hesitate to answer yes.
“Happily. It’s too integral a part of my DNA,” Downey said. “That role chose me. And look, I always say, ‘Never, ever bet against Kevin Feige.’ It is a losing bet. He’s the house. He will always win.”
“Avengers: Doomsday” is set to open in theaters May 1, 2026, followed by the release of “Avengers: Secret Wars” on May 7, 2027.