Robert Downey Jr was previously part of the Iron Man franchise and gained immense popularity worldwide for his performance as the action hero.

He will not portray the superhero in the upcoming movie but sport the character of popular villain Dr Victor Von Doom.

The movie is due to be released in May 2026.

Stars joining the Marvel franchise were unveiled at the Comic Con event in San Diego, reported BBC.

Unveiling the characters, Marvel Studio posted on Instagram: "Tonight, the talent and filmmakers of Marvel Studios’ upcoming films brought excited fans a first look at what’s next for the MCU. #SDCC2024."

"Robert Downey Jr. surprises Hall H to announce his return to the MCU as Doctor Doom in Avengers: Doomsday, in theaters May 2026. #SDCC," another post said.

Robert Downey Jr appeared as Iron Man in 2008 and his last outing in the red-golden costume was with Avengers: End Game (2019).

Marvel Syduos also announced  'Avengers Secret Wars' will release in May 2027.

After the official announcement, Robert Downey Jr shared an image of himself with Dr. Doom's mask on Instagram.

He captioned the image as: "New mask, same task."

Who is Doctor Doom?

Doctor Doom is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics.

Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in The Fantastic Four (July 1962).