With Doctor Doom, The MCU Needs To Remember The Golden Reason Why He"s So Dangerous

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The MCU needs to remember the golden reason why Doctor Doom is so dangerous. Set to become the villain of Avengers: Doomsday, Robert Downey Jr"s Victor von Doom will be the third major live-action iteration of the iconic Marvel Comics villain. However, this will also be an opportunity for this new Doom to have an inherent power that past versions have failed to provide on screen.
In the original Marvel comics, Doctor Doom is one of the greatest supervillains of all time. While Reed Richards and The Fantastic Four may be his arch-foes, Victor von Doom has evolved to become a major villain to all Marvel heroes since his first appearance in 1962. To that end, it makes sense that Doom is going to be the leading antagonist of the fifth Avengers movie. However, the hope is that the MCU"s Doctor Doom will be able to wield a power he"s yet to possess in live-action: magic.
Past Marvel Movies Have Failed Doctor Doom In One Key Area His Power Doesn't Just Come From Science Close In Fox"s first live-action Fantastic Four movies in the mid-2000s, Julian McMahon played Victor von Doom in both movies, serving as the primary antagonist in both features. Possessing powers of electricity and energy absorption, this version of Doom received his abilities from cosmic radiation. This is because McMahon"s Doom was with The Fantastic Four when they also received their powers, having financed their mission into space with his company.
Additionally, Toby Kebbell"s younger version of Doctor Doom in 2015"s Fan4stic reboot was received very poorly (as was the bulk of the movie in general). Kebbell"s Doom was a fellow scientist and computer technician working at the Baxter Institute alongside Reed Richards and Sue Storm, which somewhat resembled Doom"s origins in the comics where he and Reed were roommates who later became rivals. However, the overall character depiction was fairly controversial, as was Doom"s appearance later on at Fan4stic"s ending after he similarly received powers from the same Negative Zone/Planet Zero energies that gave the rest of The Fantastic Four their powers.
That being said, the Doctor Doom of the original comics did not receive powers alongside his arch-foes as has been shown with both live-action versions of Doctor Doom. Instead, Doom"s power comes from his own inherent scientific genius, his rule over the nation of Latveria, and his impressive ability as a gifted sorcerer. To that end, the ability to wield powerful magic is something that could really make Doctor Doom stand out in the MCU, as it"s something these past live-action iterations never touched.
Doctor Doom's Magic Is Just As Dangerous As His Scientific Ability A Powerful Sorcerer Unafraid Of Dark Magic Close In the comics, Doctor Doom has been around magic his entire life thanks to his mother. Cynthia von Doom was a witch who used the dark arts to summon demons and conjure spells. However, her soul was ultimately claimed by the demon lord Mephisto. As such, Victor dedicated his life to the pursuit of magic just as much as science, hoping to one day free his mother"s soul from Mephisto"s grip. Likewise, the machine that blew up and left Victor"s face so scarred was meant to commune with his lost mother. Years later, Doctor Doom eventually succeeds in freeing his mother"s soul with some coerced assistance from Doctor Strange.
"As with his scientific acumen and rivalry with Reed Richards" genius, Doom"s ambition and pride are so great that anything less than becoming one of the strongest wielders of magic would have been unacceptable..."
Keeping his tragic origins with magic in mind, it"s no surprise that Doctor Doom has grown to become one of the most powerful sorcerers of all time in the Marvel Universe. As with his scientific acumen and rivalry with Reed Richards" genius, Doom"s ambition and pride are so great that anything less than becoming one of the strongest wielders of magic would have been unacceptable. As such, Doom"s magical power makes him just as dangerous as any Doombot or device he might create through science.
The MCU Can Finally Debut Doctor Doom As A True Double Threat He Can Handle All Kinds Of MCU Heroes

Doctor Doom"s impressive magical power is something that needs to be explored in the MCU when Robert Downey Jr. makes his debut, either in 2026"s Avengers: Doomsday or hopefully even earlier, like in 2025"s upcoming Fantastic Four reboot. It"s simultaneously a way to provide a fully fleshed-out Doctor Doom while also offering a version that"s more distinct compared to the live-action versions of the character that have been seen in the past. Furthermore, it"s also the best way to make him a true double threat, one who can take on all the various heroes the MCU has to offer.

Related How Powerful Doctor Doom Is, Compared To Thanos Doctor Doom is one of the most formidable Marvel villains of all time, and the same will likely be true in the MCU (even compared to Thanos).
Posts 5 For Doctor Doom to truly work in the MCU as an overarching villain, he needs to be able to go head-to-head with Doctor Strange just as much as Reed Richards" Mister Fantastic. It"s also worth noting that Doom might attain god-level powers, assuming 2027"s Avengers: Secret Wars goes in the same direction as the comics where Doom saves the remnants of multiple realities following the multiverse"s collapse, forging them all together into a new patchwork reality where he rules as "God Emperor". Keeping that in mind, debuting Doom as a magical threat beforehand will likely help make that future evolution smoother for more mainstream audiences.
Doctor Doom Is A Sorcerer Supreme-Level Villain (And Should Be In The MCU) The Current Comics Could Be Teasing The Future

It"s also very exciting and worth pointing out Doctor Doom"s status in the current Marvel Comics. When the world recently became covered in Darkforce, vampires began overtaking the world...except for Laterveria, as Doom had cast a spell that killed any vampires that crossed into his nation"s borders. Seen as one of the few people who could help in defeating the vampires, Doctor Strange and his wife request his help. Doom agrees on the condition that he be granted the mantle of the Sorcerer Supreme, which would grant him additional power to save the world.
With the promise of giving the title back once the world was safe, Strange agreed and Doom saved the day from the vampires. However, he also twisted the conditions of the deal, having only promised to return the title once the world was safe...in his eyes. To that end, Doctor Doom is still the acting Sorcerer Supreme in the current Marvel Universe, a testament to his true power as a wielder of magic (which should also be the same in the MCU).
Doom as the Sorcerer Supreme is a new dynamic in the comics that"s very interesting to think about, especially seeing as how the MCU"s Doctor Strange is currently not the Sorcerer Supreme either. Currently, the title belongs to Wong as the leader of Kamar-Taj. As such, perhaps the MCU"s Doom could end up similarly securing the Sorcerer Supreme title following his debut, a smart way to prove his magical prowess and strengthen his ties to the established MCU at large. Either way, Doctor Doom"s relationship and impressive magical power should absolutely play a role in his MCU depiction.
Avengers: Doomsday is set to release May 1st, 2026.

Avengers: Doomsday Superhero Avengers: Doomsday is the fifth Avengers film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and will bring together heroes, new and old, to face off against Victor von Doom - played by the returning Robert DOwney Jr.. Avengers 5 will also mark the beginning of phase 6 of the MCU.
Release Date May 1, 2026 Writers Michael Waldron Main Genre Superhero Upcoming MCU Movies