Why Doom Attacks the Avengers: 6 MCU Events That Might’ve Made Him Doomsday’s Hero (Is It All Cap’s Fault?)

Robert Downey Jr.’s return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Doctor Doom might actually bring him back as the hero of Avengers: Doomsday, with speculation suggesting he’ll be fighting to fix these huge problems in the Multiverse Saga. Downey’s return was confirmed at 2024’s San Diego Comic-Con, five years after Tony Stark’s Iron Man sacrificed his life to defeat Thanos in Avengers: Endgame. As Doctor Doom, Downey will play one of Marvel’s most significant, popular, and powerful supervillains, but he might actually be featured as the primary hero of 2026’s upcoming Avengers: Doomsday.

Theories have suggested that Doctor Doom – after his brief debut in the mid-credits scene of The Fantastic Four: First Steps – will be traveling the multiverse in an attempt to stop incursions and save all of reality. Several MCU projects have already included major events that could lead to incursions, which means Doctor Doom might have many reasons for taking on the Avengers in Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars. Several heroes have threatened the multiverse recently, but Doctor Doom could save the day.

6) Monica Rambeau Is Trapped in an Alternate X-Men Universe

The ending of 2023’s The Marvels saw Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris) knowingly trap herself in an alternate reality to fix a hole created by Dar-Benn (Zawe Ashton). On the other side, she was found by X-Men members Beast (Kelsey Grammer) and Binary (Lashana Lynch), the former of whom has already been confirmed to be returning in Doomsday. Rambeau is trapped in a universe she isn’t supposed to be in, which could easily cause an incursion and put her on Doctor Doom’s radar. Killing her would save that universe, but could have even greater repercussions for the MCU.

5) Wolverine Is in the Wrong Universe After Deadpool & Wolverine

Monica Rambeau isn’t the only MCU character stuck in a universe she shouldn’t be in. Earth 10005, the reality of 20th Century Fox’s X-Men movies, lost its Wolverine in 2017’s Logan, but gained a replacement in 2024’s Deadpool & Wolverine, as the “Worst Wolverine” (Hugh Jackman) chose not to return to the world where everyone hates him. While this opens the door for Jackman to reprise the role, Wolverine is not supposed to exist in that world. Deadpool & Wolverine’s timeline might actually mean there are two Wolverines on Earth 10005, which could pose a bigger challenge for Doctor Doom to solve.

4) The Scarlet Witch Wreaked Havoc in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

Few Multiverse Saga projects have tackled the concept of the multiverse more than 2022’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. The Phase 4 adventure saw Wanda Maximoff’s Scarlet Witch wreak havoc across the multiverse by using the Darkhold to dream-walk. While inhabiting her variant’s body, Maximoff killed members of Earth 838’s Illuminati, surely causing wild multiversal problems that could be explored further in Avengers: Doomsday. The Scarlet Witch has been rumored to be returning alongside Doctor Doom, and he could seek her out to end her rampage once and for all.

3) Captain America Returned to the Past to Retire With Peggy Carter

Although he hasn’t been confirmed to be returning in Avengers: Doomsday, there has been huge speculation about Chris Evans bringing Steve Rogers’ Captain America back. With the Russo brothers returning to direct, it’s possible the ending of Avengers: Endgame could be explained, with Rogers’ journey to return the Infinity Stones being explored, while his ambiguous ending with Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell) on an alternate timeline could have also caused an incursion that Doctor Doom might want to fix. Doctor Doom tracking down and fighting Steve Rogers would make for an intense moment in Doomsday, and we’d love to see it.

2) Doctor Strange’s Spider-Man: No Way Home Spell Caused Multiversal Problems

Before he actually traveled the multiverse in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) tore holes in reality in 2021’s Spider-Man: No Way Home. His initial spell to try and make everyone forget Peter Parker (Tom Holland) went wrong and dragged characters from across the multiverse into Earth 616. While they eventually returned to their home realities, it’s possible that Strange actually made everyone in the multiverse forget every version of Peter Parker, which may have caused immense incursions across the entire multiverse – creating a huge mess that Doctor Doom might be happy to clean up.

1) Sylvie Killing He Who Remains Unleashed Infinite Timelines

It’s very unlikely that any variant of Kang the Conqueror will be seen in Avengers: Doomsday or Avengers: Secret Wars after Jonathan Majors’ arrest, conviction, and firing from Marvel Studios. Even so, the events of Loki on Disney+ will have a huge part to play in the Phase 6 crossovers, especially given Tom Hiddleston’s return. Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino) killing He Who Remains in Loki season 1’s finale freed the Sacred Timeline and unleashed infinite timelines, all of which have the potential to create incursions. This event needs to be addressed in Doomsday, as it kick-started the entire Multiverse Saga, and would give Doctor Doom the perfect excuse to take down some of the MCU’s most notable heroes.

What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!

Every Super Team Confirmed & Rumored for Avengers: Doomsday