Robert Downey Jr. reveals how Kevin Feige convinced him to play Dr. Doom — and his big fear returning to MCU

"Let’s get Victor Von Doom right."

Robert Downey Jr. sent MCU fans' tongues a-waggin' when he strode onstage at San Diego Comic Con and revealed himself as Dr. Doom. The unveiling signaled Downey's return to the cinematic universe that has held Hollywood in its thrall for over 16 years — since, in fact, the actor's debut in 2008's Iron Man.

Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige — with a little help from Disney CEO Bob Iger — convinced RDJ to get back in the superhero game, he explained on The Hollywood Reporter’s Awards Chatter podcast published Tuesday.

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Related: Robert Downey Jr. returning to MCU as Doctor Doom in Avengers: Doomsday

Downey was originally interested in contributing to Disney theme parks when he and wife Susan Downey sat down with Feige, with whom he has remained good friends.

“He said, ‘It just keeps occurring to me, if you were to come back …’” Downey said. “Susan was like, ‘Wait, wait. Come back as what?’”

Feige wanted to make sure that they didn't "go backwards" or "disappoint expectations" but rather "continue to beat expectations,” Downey said.

Related: How can Robert Downey Jr. play Doom in the MCU? Here's what we know from the comics

“And he brought up Victor Von Doom," he continued. "I looked into this character. Later on, he goes, ‘Let’s get Victor Von Doom right.'”

Doom is one of Marvel's greatest villains and plays an integral part in the planned next phase of the Avengers films and the MCU in general.

Downey had a lot to consider, and so he asked to meet with Iger, who almost immediately gave his okay to the idea of Downey as Doom. Iger then invited both the Oscar-winning actor and Feige to Disney's Imagineering Campus, which all but sealed the deal.

Related: Deadpool & Wolverine toyed with Robert Downey Jr. cameo: 'We have the Downey draft'

“You want to talk about two guys that are not easy to have their minds blown, let alone at the same time,” Downey recalled. “What is going on there, right now, is so beyond my expectations of what was possible.”

Downey will be playing Doom in the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday and then in Avengers: Secret Wars. In the comics, Secret Wars was a massive Marvel event, written by Jonathan Hickman with art by Esad Ribic, and first published in 2015. It tells an epic story of the multiverse getting destroyed by a process of parallel universes colliding into each other, thanks to the machinations of a group of powerful supernatural beings called the Ivory Kings. In that comic, Doom is able to save a small group of characters from across time and space and assemble them on a ragtag planet called Battleworld.

"New mask, same task," Downey said at his big Comic Con debut. "What can I say, I like playing complicated characters."

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