Chris Evans' Candid Reaction to Learning Robert Downey Jr. Is Playing Doctor Doom: ‘Huh?'
While the latest addition to the Avengers movie series will feature a mixture of current fan favorites, former actors reprising their superhero roles, and new faces making their debut, it'll also have a significant villain twist.
Longtime Iron Man actor Robert Downey Jr. is set to play the villain role, and will be Doctor Doom in the 2026 film Avengers: Doomsday. While it's a noteworthy change for Downey, the casting decision drew rave reviews from fans.
Many Marvel fans are happy Downey is back for the upcoming movie, although the decision to flip the high-profile actor from being a core member of the Avengers to the next villain they face was still surprising.
One name that found himself on the "surprised" side of reactions when the news broke was another former Avenger and longtime Captain America star, Chris Evans.
Evans recently sat down with Screen Rant alongside Materialists co-star Dakota Johnson to discuss their new film. However, the topic of Downey as Doctor Doom was understandably a talking point, and Evans revealed his candid reaction to finding out the news.
Johnson asked the million-dollar question many fans likely initially wondered by saying, "He's a villain now?" This led to Evans explaining his own one-word response to hearing that Downey would play Doctor Doom, and offering an interesting food metaphor for clarity.
"When I first heard it, I was like, 'Huh?'" Evans admitted.
"But it's almost like cheese and the crust. You're like, 'There's nothing more we can do with this pizza,' and then you're like, 'Oh, damn. You know? What else? What if we did this? (makes flipping motion). Whoa.'"
While a pizza metaphor isn't quite the direction I expected Evans to go, he deserves some credit for uniqueness.
Evans has repeatedly said he will not reprise his role as Captain America in Avengers: Doomsday, with the shield officially being passed to Anthony Mackie. As for Mackie, he stepped into the role for the 2025 film, Captain America: Brave New World.Chris Evans' Candid Reaction to Learning Robert Downey Jr. Is Playing Doctor Doom: 'Huh?' first appeared on Men's Journal on Jun 10, 2025
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