New ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ Theory Reveals Why Iron Man and Doctor Doom Have to Look the Same
Ever since it was announced at last year’s San Diego Comic-Con that Robert Downey Jr. would be returning to the MCU, fans have been buzzing. But there was a twist, he’s not coming back as Iron Man. Instead, he’s set to play Doctor Doom.
This surprising casting choice got a very mixed response. A lot of fans felt that bringing RDJ back as a completely different character might mess with the legacy of Tony Stark, especially after the emotional goodbye in Avengers: Endgame. Others questioned whether Downey Jr. was even the right fit for a villain like Doom in the first place.
Since the announcement, fans have been throwing around theories about how the MCU plans to explain the fact that Doctor Doom and Iron Man now share the same face. Some have suggested it’s just a coincidence or something viewers will have to accept.
Others think it might be a multiverse situation where Doom is an Iron Man variant. But the Russo Brothers already said that this version of Doctor Doom is not a variant, he’s the real one.
Now, a theory from X user Austin Medeiros is making waves under the tag #AvengersDoomsday. According to Medeiros, Doctor Doom is using Tony Stark’s image to trick the world. In this theory, Doom knows how much trust and admiration Tony had, so he disguises himself as Iron Man to manipulate the heroes.
#AvengersDoomsday Theory 🚨
— Austin Medeiros (@Austin_Medzz) July 27, 2025
Doctor Doom is using Tony Stark’s image to manipulate everyone. He knows the heroes will trust him if he looks like Iron Man
At the end of Doomsday, his face will revert back to reality and the real Doom’s face will be revealed
Robert Downey Jr.… pic.twitter.com/TMpqzaVtRJ
“Doctor Doom is using Tony Stark’s image to manipulate everyone. He knows the heroes will trust him if he looks like Iron Man,” Medeiros wrote.
The theory goes even further, saying that by the end of Avengers: Doomsday, Doom’s real face will be revealed and the illusion will be broken. It also claims that Robert Downey Jr. will return again, but this time as a variant of Iron Man in Secret Wars.
That version of Tony will fight against Doom, who has stolen his image and fooled everyone around him.
The idea might sound wild, but it’s not completely out of the blue. There are a couple of comic book storylines that could help back it up. One is Demon in an Armor, a What If…? comic where Doom and Tony accidentally switch bodies while in college. Doom ends up living as the wealthy genius playboy, while Tony is stuck in the body of a poor Latverian commoner.
While this storyline probably won’t be adapted, it’s still an interesting take on their connection.
The other storyline, Infamous Iron Man, might have a better chance of being used in the MCU. In that comic, Doctor Doom takes over Tony Stark’s legacy after Civil War II. He tells the Tony Stark A.I. that he wants to protect the world and continue Iron Man’s mission. He combines Stark’s tech with his own scientific knowledge and becomes a new kind of Iron Man, one who’s trying to redeem himself.
But not everyone is ready to accept Doom’s change. He faces resistance from people like Reed Richards, The Thing, and even Gwenpool, all of whom think Doom might go back to his old ways and use his power to control Latveria.
If Marvel decides to take some ideas from Infamous Iron Man, it could explain why Doctor Doom and Iron Man appear so linked in the MCU. With Tony Stark dead and his tech sitting unused, the idea of Doom stepping into that space makes a lot of sense.
But realistically, it’s likely that Marvel will go with a more simple and clean version of Doom’s story. They’ve already spent a lot of time on Kang, and they may not want to spend too long building up another villain from scratch.
Still, the idea of Doom pretending to be Iron Man and using that image to manipulate others fits well with his character. And if Downey Jr. does come back as both Doom and an Iron Man variant, that could lead to some seriously dramatic moments on screen.
What do you think about this theory? Could Doctor Doom really be hiding behind Tony Stark’s face? Let us know in the comments.