]
Is Robert Downey Jr. right for Doctor Doom? Fantastic Four star Julian McMahon gives his thoughts on the Iron Man actor taking up the mantle in the MCU.
For as many chances as the Fantastic Four have head to make a splash on the silver screen, the one thing (okay, one of MANY things) they could never get right was Doctor Doom. From Julian McMahon’s take as a wealthy businessman to Fant4stic making him a rotting avocado with the powers of Captain Planet, fans feel the spirit of the character has never been captured. So when it was announced that Marvel wouldn’t be finding a new actor to play the role in the MCU, but rather would be handing it off to Robert Downey Jr., there was a big worry that history might be repeating itself once more.
However, it seems not everyone is as pessimistic as the fans. Julian McMahon, who played the role in the 2005 incarnation of the Fantastic Four, seems to be fairly confident in Robert Downey Jr. being able to take on the mantle. When speaking on the idea at SXSW, the Doctor Doom actor explained to Screen Rant that there’s almost no actor who understands franchises like the MCU better than Downey himself.
“It’s Robert, you know what I mean? What are you going to say? His body of work speaks for itself. He’s a super talented guy. I love watching his work….I think now that there’s so many different realms of establishment of the way that you look at those pieces, you can pretty much do so many different things now.”
“If you’ve got Robert Downey Jr, who’s one of the great creatives of the last however many years we’ve been watching him for, mixed with the elements of how we can make movies these days? I think it’s going to be pretty extraordinary.”
Julian McMahon Reflects On His Time As Doctor Doom
When speaking on Robert Downey Jr. and the rise of the MCU, Julian McMahon also took time to reflect on his time in the role of Doctor Doom. The actor emphasized that the original Fantastic Four films were shot before superheroes became the cultural institution that they are today. As such, the creative team was working on the fly to figure out what kind of movies they should or even could make with the beloved characters.
“When we did the movies years ago, we were at the [precipice] of all that stuff happening. So, we were finding our way a lot, and we were trying to figure out what space the movie itself lived in. Was it a kid’s movie? Was it a family movie? Was it more comedy-driven, or was it more trauma-driven? We were trying to find all that stuff as we were shooting.”
Even if Fantastic Four wasn’t the best film, it’s clear that Julian McMahon tried his best to make the role his own. Perhaps the same grace could be extended to Robert Downey Jr. as he makes his return to the MCU at its darkest hour as perhaps one of the most controversial characters any actor could have been cast as. Though given the film starts shooting this month, it likely won’t be long until reactions start hitting the net.
Avengers: Doomsday is set to hit theaters in May 2026. Stay tuned for the latest news regarding the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and make sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for more content!
