Ever since it was revealed that Robert Downey Jr. would be returning to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the ultimate villain, Doctor Doom, fans have been speculating as to how it will impact the storyline of Avengers: Doomsday. To have the actor who played Tony Stark, aka Iron Man, take on the role of the MCU’s villain is a big gamble for the franchise. There have been many theories as to how Marvel Studios will explain Doctor Doom having Tony Stark’s face, including the idea that the ruler of Latervia will be a corrupted variant of Iron Man from another universe. On March 5, 2003, Marvel Comics debuted an evil Iron Man who could be the blueprint for Doctor Doom in Avengers: Doomsday.
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In the Marvel Comics series Exiles, which follows a group of X-Men-related heroes banding together to protect the multiverse, many alternate universes have been explored with strange variants of iconic heroes. Exiles #23 focuses on the team’s darker counterparts, Weapon X, who are sent on more morally gray missions. For their latest mission, they encounter the most evil Iron Man variant in the multiverse: Emperor Stark. The storyline “With an Iron Fist” centers on this malevolent Iron Man and how he became a worse version of Doctor Doom. This variant could potentially inspire the Doctor Doom character in Avengers: Doomsday.
How Iron Man Became His World’s Doctor Doom
Even though Emperor Stark is a variant of Iron Man, over time, his actions and appearance transform him to be more like Doctor Doom. “With an Iron Fist” takes place in the dystopian world of Earth-42777, where the age of heroes has long since passed. Although this Tony variant started as a hero, he was cruel and ambitious with plans to save the world by ruling it. By secretly funding Magneto and his Brotherhood, Iron Man helped trigger a Mutant War that cost countless heroes and civilians their lives. To win public favor, Iron Man then took on the role of humanity’s savior by killing Magneto.
After successfully killing off most of the superhero and mutant population by engineering the Mutant War, Iron Man set in motion a series of tragedies to force humanity to beg him to become their ruler. The corrupted hero caused various plagues, famines, and natural disasters, and then “solved” them to make himself to appear as an even greater savior. By that point, humanity had been beaten down and tricked so thoroughly that they willingly made Iron Man their emperor. Of course, Doctor Doom wasn’t about to let anyone other than himself rule humanity, so he battled the newly appointed Emperor Stark. In the end, Emperor Stark killed Doctor Doom. He took Doom’s cloak as a trophy, but not before the villain managed to disfigure his face horrifically.
Even though Emperor Stark hid his disfigurement behind a holographic projection of his younger face, he had, for all intents and purposes, become the new Doctor Doom and ruled over the world with an iron fist. However, like every version of Doctor Doom, Emperor Stark’s reign came to an end. When Weapon X arrived on Earth-42777, they offered to help the tyrant destroy the resistance movement against his regime, namely Black Bolt and his wife, Invisible Woman. However, Weapon X covertly set into motion Emperor Stark’s downfall. Black Bolt sacrificed his life to annihilate Emperor Stark’s armies, while Invisible Woman killed the tyrant by slitting his throat. In the end, Earth-42777 was liberated from the Armored Avenger, who had transformed into the next Doctor Doom.
What Emperor Stark Could Mean for Avengers: Doomsday
Not only is Emperor Stark a terrifying variant of Iron Man, but he could also be the key to deciphering Doctor Doom’s backstory and character in Avengers: Doomsday. While there are several storylines in Marvel Comics history where Iron Man and Doctor Doom swap places, Emperor Stark is the only one in which the Armored Avenger hijacks the villain’s design and most closely mimics his personality. Like Doctor Doom, Emperor Stark truly believes that he’s making the world a better place by conquering it, and he’s willing to do whatever it takes to see his ambitions come to fruition. “With an Iron Fist” could potentially be a great starting point for the MCU to develop its version of an Iron Man who became Doctor Doom.
The MCU version of Tony becoming a world dictator isn’t much of a stretch. He had created Ultron because he wanted to “build a suit of armor around the world.” The MCU’s Doctor Doom could be a version of Tony who took his obsession with control and security too far. Tony could have killed the original Victor Von Doom. Additionally, Emperor Stark’s method of covering up his facial deformities with a hologram of his undamaged face is the perfect way for Marvel Studios to have their cake and eat it too. Doctor Doom would still have his iconic facial scars while also using the holographic mask to heighten the drama of the Avengers seeing Tony Stark seemingly return from the dead as the multiverse’s greatest villain.
Another important aspect to consider is that, unlike his heroic main universe counterpart, Emperor Stark is a bigot who purposefully instigated a war against mutants as an excuse to wipe them out. We already know the X-Men are set to appear in Avengers: Doomsday, and many have been speculating about how they would fit into the film. Having Doctor Doom be a version of Tony Stark who seeks to destroy mutantkind could be a great way to tie the X-Men into the film’s narrative, as they would be fighting for survival against a hero-turned-tyrant. Doctor Doom could also manipulate the X-Men and the Avengers into fighting each other to eliminate both teams.
While this is all merely speculation, and it’s unlikely that Avengers: Doomsday would stick entirely to Emperor Stark’s origin, the concept of Tony becoming Doctor Doom to enforce his idea of security and wipe out potential threats like the X-Men is a solid foundation for the film’s setup. If Marvel Studios does go down the route of Doctor Doom being a variant of Tony Stark, “With an Iron Fist” is a perfect place from which to draw inspiration. If Avengers: Doomsday chronicles the descent of an Iron Man variant into an all-powerful Doctor Doom, it could potentially be one of the most groundbreaking storylines in MCU history.
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