Posted in: Marvel Studios, Movies | Tagged: avengers: doomsday

Avengers: Doomsday Star Says They Have "Labored" Not To Be A Letdown

Avengers: Doomsday star Robert Downey Jr. explained that they "labored long and hard" to avoid being a letdown for fans after Infinity War and Endgame.

When you look back at Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, it's kind of like the original run of The Lord of the Rings. There were so many unique things happening at that specific time that had to come together to make those movies happen, and it's just not something that can be replicated. Marvel spent over a decade in the build-up to those final shots in Endgame, and trying to make that happen a second time was always going to be hard. That's been one of the problems with the post-Endgame era; Marvel has been trying and not really succeeding with attempting to do the same thing again, even as everyone involved says that isn't what they are trying to do. In a recent conversation with CBR, Avengers: Doomsday star Robert Downey Jr. has been there since day one and spoke about his new villain turn in the film, as well as how they are trying very hard not to be a letdown for fans.

"I'm quite odd in that I try to stay as removed from a subjective experience of things as I can. So I try to think like the brothers. I try to feel like I'm in the writing room. I try to feel all that stuff. But eventually, there are so many big shoes to step into that I just have to go, 'What hasn't been done as well as it can be done yet?' We're always looking for that opportunity.

And a lot of it has been… there's some experimentation. We've had our moments of, 'Let's shift here.' But we landed in a place that I think will more than suffice. And it's not even about how I executed it. It's about the way it's been structured, and the other characters. There's something going on in Doomsday and forward that is literally the only antidote to, 'How do you not have these films be let down after an Infinity War and an Endgame?' And boy, have we labored long and hard to bring that down."

Part of the problem is that there's a good chance fans are going to be let down no matter what they try to do. They could make the safest choices possible when it comes to Avengers: Doomsday, and one could argue they are with the presence of the original X-Men, Downey Jr., and bringing back the Russo Brothers, or they could swing in an insane new direction, and people would still be let down. That's because the original run of Marvel films and that culmination of Infinity War and Endgame were lightning in a bottle that can't ever be replicated, and if Marvel has truly come to terms with that, then the post-Endgame era can truly begin.

Is Avengers: Doomsday Taking Steps Back Instead Of Forward?

Over the summer of 2024, word came that Marvel and Disney were courting Anthony and Joe Russo to return and direct the next two Avengers films. It made sense in a way; they were coming off a year that didn't exactly go to plan, and no doubt they wanted to go with what they thought would be the safest option. It turned out that the reports were spot on, and in July 2024, they were announced as the directors at San Diego Comic-Con. That was also where we learned that Robert Downey Jr. would be coming back as Doctor Doom, and it became very clear that Marvel was playing it safe by returning to what worked the first time.

At the end of March 2025, over the course of five and a half hours, Marvel announced a large portion of the Avengers: Doomsday cast, which includes, along with already confirmed Robert Downey Jr.,  Chris Hemsworth, Vanessa Kirby, Anthony Mackie, Sebastian Stan, Letitia Wright, Paul Rudd, Wyatt Russell, Tenoch Huerta Mejía, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Simu Liu, Florence Pugh, Kelsey Grammer, Lewis Pullman, Danny Ramirez, Joseph Quinn, David Harbour, Winston Duke, Hannah John-Kamen, Tom Hiddleston, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Alan Cumming, Rebecca Romijn, James Marsden, Channing Tatum, and Pedro Pascal. The inclusion of previous X-Men characters is more proof that Marvel is taking steps back instead of forward. The stream was also an announcement that the film had entered production. Avengers: Doomsday will be released in theaters on December 18, 2026. Avengers: Secret Wars is set to be released on December 17, 2027.

Enjoyed this? Please share on social media!

Stay up-to-date and support the site by following Bleeding Cool on Google News today!