Robert Downey Jr. has returned as the next big villain in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, announcing himself to a packed out Hall H at San Diego’s Comic-Con this weekend to whoops and cheers from the crowd… and the mouth-watering money behind his historic return has finally been revealed.
Blink and you’ll miss it, but Marvel is back on top. The celebrated return of Deadpool and Wolverine to the Marvel Cinematic Universe has earned the studio $205 million USD (~$315 million AUD), the highest R-rated opening in history, leaving people to wonder if ‘superhero fatigue’ was ever real. Perhaps audiences were just crying out for good movies.
But Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige didn’t have long to pat himself (and Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman and director Shawn Levy) on the back for what will undoubtedly go down as the blockbuster of the year. The studio head continued to delight audiences with an unexpected announcement at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con… but it’s going to cost an absolute bomb to pull it off.
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Robert Downey Jr. is unmasked as Dr. Doom
In the venue’s iconic Hall H, the Marvel boss was joined by a small army of hooded figures depicting the next big bad in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, stunning the crowd, saying: “We give you, the one person who could play Victor Von Doom,” as Robert Downey Jr. is unmasked as the next Marvel villain.
During Downey Jr.’s MCU phase, Iron Man, Captain America and Thor were the biggest characters on the planet; the comic book heroes defined an era in cinema to set a new standard for box office success and audience figures – but the studio has since failed to replicate this money-printing run with the so-called Multiverse era.
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Big-budget series on Disney+ have flopped; new storylines were erased. But Downey Jr.’s historic Marvel return marks a bold new chapter in the superhero saga and a substantial financial investment in an actor at the peak of his powers.
How much is Robert Downey Jr. getting paid for Dr. Doom?
With his return as Dr. Doom, the big villain in the upcoming title Avengers: Doomsday, Marvel bosses have had to shell out close to $100 million USD (~$154 million AUD) to secure Downey Jr.’s services, according to Variety. The deal reportedly includes “private jet travel, dedicated security and a whole ‘trailer encampment’ for the newly minted Oscar winner.”
The American actor is the highest-paid actor in Marvel history, reportedly earning between $500 million and $600 million USD ($770 million – $924 million AUD) for four Avengers blockbusters, three Iron Man and cameo appearances in three other Marvel films.
I guess that’s the price you pay to get back on top.
