Anthony Russo Talks ‘Avengers Endgame: Encore’ and Casting Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom
Everyone loves an encore.
Seven years after its record-breaking run, *Avengers: Endgame* returns to theaters this weekend, inviting fans all around the world to relive the cultural phenomenon once more. ***Avengers Endgame: Encore***, directed by brothers Joe and Anthony Russo, revisits a monumental chapter in the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s history, all while teasing what’s next. At a screening in New York City’s 92Y cultural center, Anthony Russo reflected on the film’s enduring legacy ahead of [Avengers: Doomsday*](https://www.fandango.com/AvengersDoomsday), *in theaters on December 18.
The Russo brothers spent nearly a decade mapping out pivotal stories in the MCU’s Infinity Saga, from *Captain America: The Winter Soldier* to the climactic Avengers: Endgame. “We thought about Endgame, for a lot of reasons, as the end,” the director shared.
Following Avengers: Endgame, the Russo brothers felt ready to close the book on the stories they wanted to tell in the MCU and set out to pursue other creative endeavors. But when an idea emerged that would soon become known as Avengers: Doomsday, they were immediately reeled back in. Now, with Doomsday on the horizon, Avengers Endgame: Encore presented an opportunity to think past the bookend they had once imagined for these beloved characters.
“There's certainly a pivotal moment in [Endgame: Encore] at the end where the moment has a different meaning,” teased Russo. “We sort of play one beat past where Steve Rogers’ story ended with Peggy Carter. And that in that moment, that's where Doomsday is born.”
Avengers: Doomsday assembles a cast of heroes spanning three different universes. It’s a story of epic proportions, the full scale of which is being kept tightly under wraps. “We've announced some of the cast, and we haven't announced some of the cast,” Russo told the audience.
At the center of Avengers: Doomsday’s star-studded ensemble, however, is a face fans know all too well: Robert Downey Jr. Trading in one mask for another, the Oscar-winning actor returns to the MCU as the villainous Victor Von Doom, a stark pivot from the armored hero he once played. Having the Iron Man actor take on the role of Doctor Doom felt like the kind of creative risk and challenge that both the Russo brothers and Robert Downey Jr. relished.
In fact, Anthony Russo likens the casting decision to having Tony Stark face off against Steve Rogers in *Captain America: Civil War*. When Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige gave the Russo brothers the green light to pursue Civil War, they still had to get Downey on board with the story. “From that first meeting with Robert, we were basically pitching him, ‘Hey, Robert, we want you to come in and be Tony Stark to be the antagonist to Steve Rogers in Civil War,’” Anthony Russo recalled. “It was a very scary idea to a lot of people that we would sort of put that character in a position of being considered the bad guy. But Robert is brave. He likes to be surprised, he likes to be pushed into difficult places. It was a very similar process thinking about [him] playing Victor Von Doom.”
As for whether there’s any connective tissue between Downey’s Iron Man and his Doctor Doom? “Everything is best left for the theater,” Russo teased.
#### Catch ***Avengers Endgame: Encore*** in theaters now get tickets for ***Avengers: Doomsday***, exclusively in theaters on December 18, 2026.