Jonathan Majors Reacts to Robert Downey Jr.’s Shock MCU Return

Disgraced actor Jonathan Majors says he is “heartbroken” over Robert Downey Jr.’s return to the MCU, TMZ reported.

Downey made headlines last weekend at Comic-Con when he announced his return for two Avengers movies, but shocked fans when he revealed he wouldn’t be reprising his role of Tony Stark…at least not in the traditional sense. Instead, Downey will play the role of Doctor Doom, one of the franchise’s most well-known villains.

The announcement came several months after Marvel dismissed Majors, who was set to play a different villain in the two films, after the actor was found guilty of assault and harassment stemming from a March 2023 altercation with his former girlfriend, Grace Jabbari. Marvel had enlisted Majors to play Kang in the forthcoming Avengers sequels, a role he debuted in last year’s Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.

Without directly quoting Majors except to say the actor is “heartbroken” over the MCU’s redirection, TMZ reported that he has many opposing feelings regarding Downey’s return to Marvel. On the one hand, Majors is excited to see Doctor Doom finally introduced and is thrilled to have Downey back in the fold. On the other, Majors adored his time playing Kang and was looking forward to taking the role to new, villainous heights in the ambitious two-parter.

Downey stunned fans when he dramatically unveiled himself as Doctor Doom at Comic-Con last weekend in San Diego. While the immediate coverage focused on the fact that Downey is playing a new role in the MCU, that’s not strictly true.

While it remains unclear which route the new Avengers films will take, there is a timeline in the Iron Man comics where Tony Stark assumes the identity of Doctor Doom after the villain destroys Stark’s life. Doctor Doom was previously the villain in 2005’s ill-received Fantastic Four. Downey reportedly auditioned for the role almost 20 years ago, but lost out to Julian McMahon.

Downey will certainly make a much buzzier (and box-office-friendly) villain than Majors did. Production is set to commence on the fifth and sixth Avengers films in 2025.