That Viral Robert Downey Jr Doctor Doom Photo? It’s AI, Not Avengers: Doomsday

Quick reality check: that image of Robert Downey Jr. in a Doctor Doom getup racing around X this week? Yeah, it is AI. Fun for the timeline, not so helpful for anyone trying to figure out what Marvel is actually cooking. Here is what is real, what is rumor, and why this movie already has people vibrating with anticipation.

About that 'first look' making the rounds

An AI-generated shot pretending to be our first look at RDJ as Doom blew up fast, but digital artist BossLogic — who has done official work on Avengers: Endgame, Blue Beetle, and The Book of Boba Fett — called it out immediately. No shade, just a precise correction from someone who would know.

"You got the mask and hoodie wrong tho 😅👌 https://t.co/9B5b357zZG" — BossLogic (@Bosslogic), November 22, 2025

Bottom line: Marvel has not released an official costume reveal for Doom. Until that happens, expect more AI fakes trying to fill the void.

Why RDJ as Doom has the hype dialed to 11

Robert Downey Jr. slipping back into the MCU, this time as an unapologetic big bad, is the kind of swing Marvel fans have been begging for. He even teased it on Instagram with a Doom mask and the caption, 'New mask, same task'. Doctor Doom is not a mid-tier villain — in the comics he bends entire universes, heroes, and storylines around him. Pair that with Downey Jr.'s screen presence and you can see why expectations are already sky-high.

It also arrives at a moment when Marvel could use a hard reset. Avengers: Doomsday is being framed as that pivot — darker, bigger, and more ambitious. Fans are already speculating how the movie will play Doom's genius, his armor, and his political power. And with this thing set to mash together legacy Avengers, the new Fantastic Four, and returning X-Men actors, Doom is clearly the gravitational center of one of Marvel's biggest ensembles ever.

The date moved. Here is why.

Avengers: Doomsday has shifted from its earlier spring 2026 slot to December 18, 2026. Internally, Marvel is leaning toward fewer, larger event films, and this delay reflects the scope creep that comes with that strategy, according to industry chatter reported by Deadline. Think of it as spacing out Phase Six anchors instead of stacking them in the usual summer pileup.

Production-wise, cameras rolled in April 2025 at Pinewood Studios in England under the delightfully bland working title 'Apple Pie 1' and ran through September. Kevin Feige has said there is still active 'plus-ing' happening on set — translation: they are iterating deep into the process (via THR). With principal photography wrapped, the focus now is post, VFX, and the long runway of marketing. The December date also gives Marvel clean lead-in time to Avengers: Secret Wars, now planted in December 2027, turning both into year-end tentpoles.

Who is making it — and who is in it

Directors: Anthony Russo and Joe Russo. Produced by Marvel Studios with AGBO. Currently slated for a worldwide theatrical release on December 18, 2026.

• Robert Downey Jr.
• Chris Hemsworth
• Vanessa Kirby
• Anthony Mackie
• Sebastian Stan
• Letitia Wright
• Paul Rudd
• Wyatt Russell
• Tenoch Huerta Mejia
• 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
• Pedro Pascal

So where does that leave us?

The viral 'reveal' is fake, the real costume is still under wraps, and Marvel is clearly betting big on Doom as the centerpiece of its next era. If you got fooled by the AI image, you were in good company — now we wait for the official drop and the inevitable chaos that follows.