Doctor Doom Theory Explains How Spider-Man Could Be Crucial To Robert Downey Jr’s MCU Return

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Tom Holland"s Spider-Man plays a key role in the story of Robert Downey Jr."s Doctor Doom, according to a new Marvel Cinematic Universe theory. Holland and RDJ are forever linked in the MCU. As has become well-known, the MCU version of Spider-Man had Downey"s Iron Man as his mentor. That led to some hilarious and emotional moments in some of the MCU"s best movies. However, the chemistry between Downey and Holland would be cut short when Iron Man died in 2019"s Avengers: Endgame. Since then, there has not been a single Avengers movie.
Well, that is about to change in a couple of years, with the MCU"s slate of projects including 2026"s Avengers: Doomsday and 2027"s Avengers: Secret Wars. Downey is coming back to the MCU, but he is playing Doctor Doom, not Tony Stark, in both Avengers movies — reportedly debuting in The Fantastic Four: First Steps" credits scene. So far, Marvel has decided not to reveal details related to Avengers: Doomsday"s story or what the future holds for Doctor Doom"s arrival in the MCU. However, a new theory based on Deadpool & Wolverine could have figured out what is in store.
What Is An Anchor Being? Key MCU Multiverse Term Explained Deadpool & Wolverine Introduced The Concept Close Replacing Jonathan Majors" Kang the Conqueror as the main villain of the MCU"s Multiverse Saga, Robert Downey Jr."s Doctor Doom will have the job of presenting a massive threat to not only heroes like Tom Holland"s Spider-Man, but also multiverse characters. Marvel Studios has released a few key projects focused on the multiverse that have introduced important terms like incursions, absolute points, nexus events, the Sacred Timeline, and Anchor Beings. The latter came in the MCU"s biggest release of 2024, Deadpool & Wolverine. The only MCU movie to be released this year was a major multiverse event.

Related Avengers: Doomsday Theory Undoes The Ending Of Spider-Man: No Way Home With A Major Twist A new Avengers: Doomsday theory based on MCU Spider-Man 4 updates explains how Spider-Man: No Way Home"s ending can be undone in the near future.
Posts Deadpool & Wolverine"s Anchor Beings explanation came through the TVA"s Mr. Paradox, played by Matthew Macfadyen. According to him, an Anchor Being is a character that is so important to their universe that once they die, the fate of their reality is set in stone. The universe gradually decays until there is nothing left. Paradox explained that because Hugh Jackman"s Wolverine from Fox"s X-Men movies was the Anchor Being of Deadpool"s universe, and with him gone after Logan, the universe would be destroyed at some point. The concept sets up a new Doctor Doom theory in a key way.
MCU Theory: Doctor Doom Is Killing Anchor Beings The Marvel Villain Is Likely After The Control Of The Multiverse Close A new Doctor Doom theory shared by user homodemiks on Reddit explains why Robert Downey Jr."s new MCU character could be after Tom Holland"s Spider-Man. According to the theory, in order to control the multiverse in Avengers: Doomsday, Victor von Doom could be hopping from one universe to the next in search of Anchor Beings. By killing those characters, Doom would guarantee that their universes would be destroyed. And so, the MCU villain would have control over every character who came from those universes, offering them salvation if they accepted to follow his orders.
In Marvel Comics" Secret Wars, Doctor Doom shapes the multiverse how he sees fit, with several characters and iconic Marvel locations existing in Battleworld, which he rules over as God Emperor Doom. The MCU could feature a similar storyline, which leads to Robert Downey Jr."s Doctor Doom facing Tom Holland"s Spider-Man. Marvel has yet to explain how RDJ could be playing Doctor Doom after Tony Stark, but given how the villain has the face of Peter Parker"s mentor, it is expected that the characters will interact a lot in the Avengers films, and Spider-Man could be the MCU"s Anchor Being.
Why Spider-Man Makes The Most Sense For The MCU’s Anchor Being Tom Holland Is Coming Back For Another Solo Movie Close There are a few factors that make Spider-Man the best candidate for the MCU"s Anchor Being. The first of them is that Peter Parker is the only MCU hero to have a solo movie confirmed to come out between the next two Avengers films so far. As such, it seems like the events of Avengers: Doomsday should carry over into Spider-Man 4, with the movie then setting up Avengers: Secret Wars in some way. Holland"s past Spider-Man movies also serve as examples of why Peter should be the MCU"s Anchor Being. Spider-Man: No Way Home nearly grossed $2 billion worldwide.
MCU Spider-Man Movies
Release Year
Spider-Man: Homecoming
2017
Spider-Man: Far From Home
2019
Spider-Man: No Way Home
2021
Spider-Man 4
2026
Prior to that, Holland"s other Spider-Man movies were also very successful, with one of them even crossing the $1 billion mark. Aside from the popularity of the MCU"s Spider-Man, the Marvel hero, in general, is easily the most popular superhero in the world. According to data from Google Analytics (via scarecroe/Reddit) shared in 2021, Spider-Man was the most popular superhero in 48.7% of the world, with Wonder Woman, Batman, and Iron Man following him. Holland will soon have 9 MCU appearances, cementing Spider-Man"s popularity. If Spidey is truly the MCU"s Anchor Being, his path and Doctor Doom"s should cross.

Avengers: Doomsday 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

Avengers: Secret Wars Avengers: Secret Wars is the sixth Avengers film and takes place during phase six of Marvel's Cinematic Universe. The film will see several heroes from the prior phases return and battle against a cosmic threat to rival Thanos, and borrows elements of the Marvel Comics event of the same name.
Release Date May 7, 2027 All Announced Upcoming MCU Movies