I think we have already seen Doctor Doom’s childhood in this MCU film featuring Robert Downey Jr.

Avengers: Doomsday won't be out for a while. Still, since the release of Thunderbolts*, MCU fans are eager to see Doctor Doom on the screen. The post-credit scenes of Thunderbolts* offer some insights into how the new team of anti-heroes will tie into the Marvel juggernaut. Until then, there's another MCU film on the way. So, the fans have a reason to believe that The Fantastic Four: First Steps will lay the foundation for Doom's introduction in Avengers: Doomsday.

However, one thing has been bugging them about Doctor Doom. Robert Downey Jr will play this character, even though he has already played MCU's savior Iron Man. The promos also suggested that he won't always be wearing his mask. Then, how can someone looking exactly like Tony Stark appear in Doomsday? Won't that be odd for the heroes who fought alongside Tony Stark?

Initially, some wondered if bringing Robert Downey Jr was the studio's way to bring itself back to its glory days. After all, Downey Jr has a sizable cachet among MCU fans. However, there might be a reason to justify why Doctor Doom and Iron Man look alike.

In an interview with The Times about Downey Jr's return in Doomsday, Anthony Russo said,

“We can’t explain that, as it’s part of the story. But there’s nobody else in the world who could play this character the way he’s about to.”

So, his comments might be hinting at a connection between Iron Man and Doctor Doom. As always, fans have started putting down their theories online. Some of them are based on the stories from Marvel comics, while others are based on some assumptions in the MCU's multiversal saga. Let's explore the same.

How do Iron Man and Doctor Doom look alike? Fan theories explored

One of the fan theories about Robert Downey Jr.'s return to the MCU implies that Doctor Doom might just be an Iron Man, who survived Thanos' snap and went bad along the way. So, the new villain may just be a variant of Iron Man.

However, more theories are floating on the internet that believe something similar about variants. They point at older Marvel Comics as reference points to make sense of Downey Jr's two characters in a multiversal fusion. One of them also hints that Doomsday's Doom might just be the one who once took over the Iron Man mantle.

There's one more theory that suggests a connection between Tony Stark, Victor von Doom, and Harley Keener (played by Ty Simpkins), who appeared as a child in Iron Man 3. Eventually, he briefly appeared in Avengers: Endgame during the final, emotional farewell.

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After his brief encounter with Tony Stark, he considered Tony a father figure and stayed in touch since then. He was Tony Stark's ally during a crucial mission, and thanks to his smarts, he was brought up to be the next Iron Man.

Since that didn't work out, little Harley might just have turned to the dark side of Iron Man to be the Doctor Doom. It doesn't exactly explain why he looks like Tony Stark, but this might be his way to be close to his idol.

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