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Chris McPherson

Steven Weintraub

Published Jul 27, 2026, 7:30 PM EDT

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The jokes people make about the Marvel Studios snipers whenever spoilers get too close to being revealed have gone around for years, with the studio preferring to focus on what they let go public. As such, Robert Downey Jr.’s return to the MCU as Victor Von Doom has remained one of Avengers: Doomsday’s greatest mysteries. While the trailers have teased how dangerous he is, we don’t actually know how bad this Latverian truly is. Even the actors sharing the screen with him have been reluctant to say much.

During an interview with Collider’s Steve Weintraub at San Diego Comic-Con following Marvel’s Hall H presentation, Hayley Atwell offered one of the clearest descriptions yet of what it was like working opposite Downey’s Doctor Doom, admitting his performance fundamentally changed the atmosphere on set. Asked how much she wanted to learn about Doctor Doom while filming, Atwell admitted she deliberately avoided asking questions because Downey’s performance spoke for itself, and explained that the contrast between Downey on and off camera made the experience even more striking. She told Collider:

“I didn’t ask, in part because his presence on set was so enigmatic as Doom. Robert, in between takes, he invites people to eat lunch with him, and he’s super open and fun and wants everyone to have a good time… But when he’s Doom, it’s so enigmatic. It’s so domineering that it’s really intimidating and very powerful.”

Rather than breaking that illusion, Atwell wanted to preserve it throughout filming, so that the feeling of dread, menace and uncertainty was rampant throughout her performance. It’s one of the most revealing descriptions yet of Downey’s take on Marvel’s iconic villain. “Also, when I was in scenes, I didn’t want that illusion to be broken for me,” Atwell explained, “so I kept that feeling of, ‘I don’t know who this person really is and what they’re capable of, but I just know there’s a darkness there.’”

Your answers point to the iconic sci-fi hero who shares your instincts, your values, and your particular way of facing the impossible.

You carry a weight most people would crumble under — the knowledge of what you’re capable of, and the burden of what you might have to become.

You lead with instinct, warmth, and an absolute refusal to accept a no-win scenario — because you’ve always believed there’s a third option nobody else has thought of yet.

You are the kind of person who holds the line when everyone else is losing faith — not because you’re fearless, but because giving up simply isn’t something you’re capable of.

You are not reckless, not grandiose, and not particularly interested in being anyone’s hero — you just refuse to stop when it matters.

You have been through fire that would break most people — and what came out the other side is something the world underestimates at its peril.

Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige also addressed Doctor Doom during Comic-Con, explaining that Avengers: Doomsday has been designed as a true introduction to the character rather than relying on audiences’ knowledge of the comics. Comparing Doom to villains such as Green Goblin, Doctor Octopus and Thanos, Feige explained that every great Marvel antagonist has to work for newcomers first. “This is a movie that introduces Doctor Doom to the world, and peels the onion on a fascinating, fascinating character,” said Feige. The Russo Brothers echoed that sentiment, describing Doom as “the smartest man in every room he walks into” whose mastery of both science and the Dark Arts makes him unlike any villain the MCU has faced before.

Avengers: Doomsday arrives in cinemas on December 16, 2026.