Avengers: Doomsday Marvel Cinematic Universe Movies

Doomsday & Secret Wars Have The Perfect Opportunity To Make 1 Villain Return Tease I Never Thought Would Happen A Reality After Bringing Back Robert Downey Jr As Doctor Doom

adminMarch 22, 2025

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Avengers: Doomsday will see the return of Robert Downey Jr. to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Doctor Doom, but details of his return have suggested that another villain from the early MCU could also appear in that film or its sequel. While many of the strongest MCU villains have been defeated, there are many ways for some of these foes to reappear in future stories. With the fate of the multiverse in question, the perfect opportunity to bring back one in particular is clearly presented.

Robert Downey Jr. starred in several Iron Man movies, where the character built a foundation that would make him arguably the most important character to the universe. Following Iron Man 3, the character remained instrumental to the larger franchise, co-starring in films like Spider-Man: Homecoming and Captain America: Civil War. While most of his supporting cast were brought along for these projects, one memorable villain was set to return in a way that was never executed. This would make sense to do in the next Avengers films.

Jeff Bridges Has Stated That His Iron Man Villain Was Initially Supposed To Live In 2008’s Iron Man (& Teased A Possible But Unlikely Return)

Obadiah Stane Was Originally Supposed To Survive The Events Of Iron Man

Obadiah Stane was the villain of the first Iron Man movie, betraying Tony Stark and becoming the Iron Monger in the film. During a Q&A on IGN‘s Facebook page back in 2015, actor Jeff Bridges revealed that when he “was hired on, it was scripted that Obadiah would live.” This would have given the option for Iron Monger to appear in further sequels. In fact, the original iteration of the Iron Man trilogy was rumored not to feature Stane as the Iron Monger until the film’s sequels, giving him a longer villainous arc.

There has been talk of bringing Obadiah Stane back to the MCU, with Bridges making comments about this himself. Bridge shared in the IGN Q&A that “they decided to kill my ass off. Telling me ‘it’s a comic-fantasy, so who knows, your character could come back.’ I guess we’ll see…” This did not seem very concrete, but it is clear that the possibility of Stane returning to the MCU has been in mind for some time. With the upcoming Avengers sequels ahead, this now seems more likely than ever.

The Multiverse Saga’s Avengers Movies Make A Return Way More Likely Than Ever Before

The Upcoming Films Provide Many Opportunities For Familiar Characters To Reemerge

Robert Downey Jr. is returning to the MCU as Doctor Doom, and it makes sense that other evil Avengers could appear alongside him. With a countless number of possible universes, it is likely that different versions of all kinds of heroes and villains from the MCU past could reappear. Obadiah Stane is certainly one of these characters that could easily appear in the upcoming films. Perhaps Robert Downey Jr.’s Doctor Doom works with his own version of Stane, with the two aligned on their goals.

Conversely, Stane could be an entirely different kind of character in Avengers: Doomsday. While the iteration in the MCU was a villainous foil to the heroic Iron Man, perhaps the Iron Monger from Doctor Doom’s universe is actually a hero. This could give the opportunity for Jeff Bridges to fight alongside the Avengers against their greatest foes, and for Obadiah Stane to distinguish himself as a hero. Either way, there are many opportunities for Stane to reappear in the forthcoming films.

Robert Downey Jr Returning As Doctor Doom Makes Iron Man’s First Villain Reappearing Also Far More Logical

Tony Stark And Obadiah Stane Have Likely Had Relationships In Most Universes

If Robert Downey Jr. is returning to the MCU as Doctor Doom, it makes sense that other characters from the Iron Man movies could also appear. Especially if this Doom is a Tony Stark variant, it seems likely that his universe would have had a Happy Hogan, a Pepper Potts, and especially an Obadiah Stane. Stane was instrumental to Stark’s company and, as a ruthless businessman, developed a significant and long-lasting relationship with Tony Stark.

Their dynamic may be skewed, and there will certainly be some unexpected twists in the upcoming films. However, it seems incredibly likely that Obadiah Stane could return to the MCU in the upcoming films. Jeff Bridges is an excellent actor who was planned to have a much larger presence in Iron Man’s MCU history. While that was not done, there are surely many plot threads and story ideas from those plans that could be brought to the MCU, tying things together neatly in Avengers: Secret Wars.

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Clearly, Jeff Bridges could have been a larger part of the MCU. He was an excellent villain in Iron Man, and it’s disappointing that his extended role in the franchise was never revisited. Still, Marvel is well aware of their entire saga, and will likely be making smart decisions with the upcoming Avengers films that help to make the franchise feel even more interconnected. No matter how the Marvel Cinematic Universe does this, including Obadiah Stane in their future films feels like a good choice.