Robert Downey Jr's return to the MCU is proving controversial, but there's a surprising comic book history between Iron Man and Doctor Doom

The surprise casting of iconic Iron Man actor Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom , the villain of the next two Avengers movies, has many fans scratching their heads, wondering whether there will be any connection between Downey's beloved Tony Stark and his new character, Victor Von Doom, in the MCU. It's not impossible - and they have plenty of connections in comics to draw on for a potential twist.

As one might expect of two of the smartest men in the Marvel Universe who both wear suits of high-tech armor, Iron Man and Doctor Doom have clashed a few times since they both debuted in the early '60s.

Their first big fight, way back in Iron Man #149-150 by writer Dave Michelinie, artist John Romita Jr., and inker/co-writer Bob Layton even took them back in time to the distant past of Arthurian legend where Doctor Doom made a bargain with the villainous Morgan le Fay to aid her in defeating King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, though Iron Man helped Arthur and his knights emerge victorious.

But oddly enough, there was actually a period of time in which Victor Von Doom took up the mantle of Iron Man - the Infamous Iron Man.

The 2016 comic Infamous Iron Man by writer Brian Michael Bendis, artist Alex Maleev, and colorist Matt Hollingsworth follows up on two key events in the Marvel Universe. First, in 2015/16's Secret Wars , Doctor Doom uses his combined knowledge of science and magic to save the last bits of the Multiverse from destruction, combining them into the place known as Battleworld, where Doom himself rules over a kingdom comprised of the final remnants of many different realities.

At the end of Secret Wars, Doom is defeated, but his disfigured face is left healed, leaving him going around without his mask for the first time ever. Meanwhile, the Fantastic Four disband with Reed and Sue Richards traveling in the Multiverse and Doom back in the Marvel Universe without his hated nemesis.

Then, in 2016, the story Civil War II pits Tony Stark and Carol Danvers against each other in an ideological fight over whether it's ethical to use metahumans with precognitive abilities to predict future crimes and disasters. Tony wins his ideological battle against predicting the future, but Carol defeats him in their final fight, leaving him comatose.

It's here that Doom steps in as Iron Man, taking up Stark's former mantle and embarking on a journey of self-discovery to become a true hero. But his journey would have a tragic ending leading him straight back to his roots as a supervillain.

Doom's downfall as Iron Man comes while fighting the Hood (future villain of Disney Plus' Ironheart MCU streaming series) in a battle that leaves his face once again scarred after being burned by the Hood's smoldering demonic claws, ending his time as Iron Man.

Following Tony's recovery, Doom retreats back to his native kingdom of Latveria, which has become embroiled in a civil war in his absence from the throne. Once again donning his malevolent iron mask, Doom reclaims his throne and quashes the civil war, setting himself back on a path of confrontation with his arch foes, the returning Fantastic Four.

And given that the Multiverse is almost certainly in play with Doctor Doom's entry into the MCU thanks to the status of the recently rechristened Fantastic Four: The First Steps, it's worth noting that in the alternate universe of the so-called Heroes Reborn reality in comics, Doom and Iron Man have another direct connection.

In this reality, which reimagines the characters of the Avengers and the Fantastic Four in their own continuity away from the rest of the Marvel Universe, young Tony Stark, Reed Richards, and Victor Von Doom are all part of a group of scientists who call themselves "the Knights of the Atomic Roundtable" who are all collaborating on an advanced suit of power armor - the prototype of which would go on to be developed into both Tony Stark's Iron Man armor and Doom's signature battle armor.

Will the MCU version of Doctor Doom draw on any of these connections between Tony Stark and Victor Von Doom? It's still too early to say. But given the Multiversal nature of the current MCU, it seems like a stretch to imagine there won't be some kind of connection between Robert Downey Jr's iconic Iron Man and his upcoming Doctor Doom.

Robert Downey, Jr's casting as Doctor Doom comes just as Doom is once again taking his place as the main villain of Marvel Comics .