The Russo Brothers are finally offering some insight into one of the biggest questions surrounding Avengers: Doomsday: why Marvel Studios brought Robert Downey Jr. back to the MCU as Doctor Doom after he spent more than a decade playing Tony Stark.
And according to Joe and Anthony Russo, the resemblance between the two characters is very much part of the point.
Speaking with Empire following the release of Avengers: Endgame Encore, the directors discussed the startling new ending Marvel has attached to its 2019 blockbuster, which deliberately transforms one of the most recognizable callbacks to Tony Stark into an introduction for Victor von Doom.
Joe Russo described what Marvel is doing with the two characters as a deliberate exploration of “symmetry,” “good and evil,” and “duality.”
That revelation provides considerably more context for Marvel’s controversial decision to cast Downey as Doctor Doom.
Marvel Turns Tony Stark’s Final Tribute Into Doctor Doom
The original theatrical version of Avengers: Endgame contained no traditional post-credits scene.
Instead, Marvel concluded the credits with a familiar sound: Tony Stark hammering metal while building his original Iron Man armor in the cave during 2008’s Iron Man.
It was a remarkably simple tribute. Stark had just sacrificed himself to defeat Thanos, and the sound brought the MCU full circle to the character who started the franchise.
Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man in Avengers: Endgame (2019), Marvel Studios
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Seven years later, Avengers: Endgame Encore changes the meaning of that moment.
After audiences hear the familiar hammering, Marvel now reveals a hooded Doctor Doom forging his mask. The imagery deliberately mirrors Stark creating the Mark I Iron Man armor.
Empire asked the Russos directly about the decision.
Joe Russo initially joked: “It’s been planned all along.”
Anthony Russo followed by joking that it was almost as though the same actor was playing both characters.
But Joe Russo then gave a much more revealing explanation.
“There is certainly a symmetry at play here,” Russo said, adding that the filmmakers are exploring “good and evil” through the characters.
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA – JULY 27: (L-R) Joe Russo, Robert Downey Jr. and Anthony Russo speak onstage during the Marvel Studios Panel in Hall H at SDCC in San Diego, California on July 27, 2024. (Photo by Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Disney)
According to Russo, the Doom footage was specifically designed to closely mirror Tony Stark because of the “duality” Marvel intends to explore.
That makes the final scene far more significant than a clever Robert Downey Jr. callback.
Marvel appears to be intentionally presenting Tony Stark and Victor von Doom as two sides of the same coin.
No, Doctor Doom Wasn’t Actually Planned in 2019
Russo’s “planned all along” remark should not be interpreted literally.
There’s no indication Marvel Studios secretly intended Doctor Doom to be behind the hammering sound when Avengers: Endgame was released in 2019.
In fact, Anthony Russo has been quite open about the fact that Endgame was originally intended as an ending.
Doctor Doom in Avengers: Doomsday – Marvel Entertainment, YouTube
Speaking about the newly added Steve Rogers material, Anthony told Empire that he and his brother viewed Steve’s reunion with Peggy Carter as the character’s definitive conclusion when they made the movie.
Joe explained that part of the appeal of returning for Doomsday was discovering that they could now “reach back to pull the story forward.”
That’s exactly what Marvel is doing with Tony Stark’s hammering.
The sound was originally a tribute to Iron Man.
Marvel has now retroactively attached a second meaning to it by showing Doom forging his mask.
So What Exactly Is the Tony Stark and Doctor Doom Connection?
That remains the enormous unanswered question.
Marvel Studios has repeatedly maintained that Downey is playing Victor Von Doom, rather than simply returning as an evil version of Tony Stark.
Anthony Russo recently reiterated that position when he was directly asked whether there was “connective tissue” between the characters.
“We are fully committed to Robert Downey as Victor Von Doom,” Russo said.
Doctor Doom in Avengers: Doomsday – Marvel Entertainment, YouTube
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However, Russo conspicuously declined to explain why Doom looks like Tony Stark or precisely how the two characters are related.
“You tell me,” he responded when asked about their connection, describing the question as “pregnant” before saying the mystery surrounding Downey’s casting is something audiences should discover in the theater.
The latest comments from Joe Russo now add another piece to that puzzle.
‘Endgame Encore’ Is Rewriting the Road to ‘Doomsday’
The Doom reveal is also part of a much larger effort to transform Endgame from the conclusion of one Marvel story into the beginning of another.
Endgame Encore contains several minutes of new material specifically designed to bridge the 2019 movie with Doomsday. The new sequences involve Steve Rogers and Peggy Carter, Loki, Bruce Banner, Doctor Doom, and the TVA as the Multiverse begins collapsing.
Anthony Russo has even said that the newly extended Steve Rogers ending is effectively the moment where Doomsday is “born.”
That’s a remarkable reversal considering how definitively Endgame appeared to conclude both Steve Rogers and Tony Stark’s stories.
Avengers Doomsday Art – X, @andyparkart
For Tony Stark, however, Marvel is doing something slightly different.
Tony remains dead. Instead, the man who portrayed him has returned as Victor von Doom, and Marvel is deliberately building Doom’s imagery out of the visual language associated with Stark.
The sound that once reminded audiences of the birth of Iron Man now accompanies the birth of Doctor Doom.
And that isn’t an accident.
What do you think the connection is between Tony Stark and Doom? Sound off and let us know!
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