Avengers: Doomsday‘s biggest question revolves around how Robert Downey Jr.’s Doctor Doom enters the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and a new theory explains how Doctor Strange might have a hand in that situation. Having played Iron Man for more than a decade, leading some of the best movies in the MCU, Downey’s announcement as Doctor Doom took the world by surprise. Due to his past as the franchise’s most prominent hero, many theories have since emerged about how Doctor Doom could be played by Marvel’s Tony Stark and what that means for the upcoming Avengers movies.

Avengers: Doomsday‘s story is safely locked away by Marvel. The only details that have come out about the film are that it features Doctor Doom’s MCU debut and some of the heroes and stars that will return to fight him. Recently, Benedict Cumberbatch’s Doctor Strange was involved in a confusing situation. After saying that he was excited to film the project, the actor changed his comments and claimed Doctor Strange no longer aligned with Avengers: Doomsday‘s story. However, Cumberbatch has since backtracked on those claims, and with Doctor Strange now confirmed for Avengers: Doomsday, he could cause Doctor Doom’s debut.

Marvel Studios Has Established The Importance Of Incursions

The Multiverse Events Are Key To The Next Avengers Movies

In Marvel Comics, Incursions are central to the plot of Secret Wars, which will be the Avengers movie that follows 2026’s Avengers: Doomsday. Both in the comics and the MCU, Incursions are events that happen when two Earths collide, be it through a single character from one coming to the other or more. That can lead to the total destruction of one or both universes. Years before Avengers: Secret Wars, the MCU’s Multiverse Saga has already begun the process of setting up Incursions for the crossover event by having a few pop up around the franchise.

Spider-Man: No Way Home was the first MCU project to show one — at least the start of an Incursion — as Doctor Strange used a spell that stopped several multiverse characters from entering the MCU and destabilizing Earth-616, which could have destroyed it. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness then not only explained what Incursions are, but showed the aftermath of one and teased others. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania had Kang the Conqueror claim he started a multiversal war after discovering how “endless incursions“ were coming. The Marvels almost ended with an Incursion, which was stopped in time.

Doctor Strange Is A Major Threat To The Multiverse

The MCU Has Already Made That Clear In Big Ways

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness was the first MCU project to really focus on Incursions. The film did a great job of exploring the multiverse and Doctor Strange’s role in it. Upon arriving on Earth-838, Strange meets the Illuminati. The group of heroes from that universe included a variant of Patrick Stewart’s Charles Xavier, John Krasinski’s Reed Richards, Anson Mount’s Black Bolt, and more. It was during the meeting with the Illuminati that Benedict Cumberbatch’s Marvel character was told that the Scarlet Witch was not the multiverse’s main threat, with Doctor Strange serving that role.

There have been a few Incursions in the MCU, and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness showed how different versions of the character caused Incursions. The reason for that was Doctor Strange’s use of the Darkhold. The Earth-838 version of the sorcerer was killed by the rest of the Illuminati for the multiversal mess he made by dreamwalking. Then there was Sinister Strange, who started killing his variants and ended up creating an Incursion that killed everyone in his universe but him. Finally, Clea appears at the end of the film to reveal Earth-616 Strange caused an Incursion.

However, that is not where it stops. The animated What If…? series might not have been part of the MCU’s main universe, but it helped show how other Doctor Strange variants offer a threat to universes. Strange Supreme destroyed his universe by trying to save Christine Palmer, which he could not do, as it was an Absolute Point in time, meaning her death was an event that was set in stone for that timeline. Strange Supreme later sacrifices many multiverse heroes and villains to try to revive his universe, showing how much of a threat Doctor Strange can be.

Avengers: Doomsday Theory Has Doctor Strange Save Doctor Doom

The Multiverse Saga’s Main Villain Could Be Connected To The Hero

The new Doctor Doom theory is based on Benedict Cumberbatch’s confirmation that Doctor Strange will appear in Avengers: Doomsday, as well as how Strange has been propped up as a threat to the multiverse. With Strange’s next MCU appearance happening in Avengers: Doomsday, it would make sense for the MCU movie to touch on the mission Clea recruited Strange for. According to the Avengers movie theory, Doomsday would follow Clea and Doctor Strange trying to stop the Incursion Strange created. One of the universes affected would be the one where Robert Downey Jr.’s Doctor Doom comes from.

However, despite his and Clea’s best efforts, Doctor Strange is unable to save Victor von Doom’s universe. Feeling guilty and not knowing what else to do, Strange brings Doctor Doom to Earth-616. As Doom is known to hold grudges, he sets out on his quest to destroy all universes and create a new one — Battleworld — where he would have full control. This cements what the Illuminati said about Doctor Strange being the multiverse’s biggest threat. The chain of events would have been started by Strange using the Darkhold to dreamwalk, with Doctor Doom’s MCU arrival being his fault.

How Doctor Strange Could Redeem Himself In Avengers: Secret Wars

The Hero Could Take Over The Role Of A Marvel Comics Character

When Benedict Cumberbatch commented on how Doctor Strange was seemingly not part of Avengers: Doomsday anymore before walking back those claims, he also shared some insight into Avengers: Secret Wars. That part of the actor’s statement has not been backtracked by the star, and so it offers an interesting tease at Strange’s MCU future. According to Cumberbatch, Doctor Strange will be central to Avengers: Secret Wars‘ story. Based on the theory that Strange is the reason why Doctor Doom gets to Earth-616 and wants to rule the multiverse, there is a role he could play to fix that.

In Marvel Comics, Molecule Man plays a key role in the events of Secret Wars. Molecule Man variants lead to the destruction of their universes, being then hunted by Doctor Doom. Based on how the MCU has shown that Doctor Strange variants have been responsible for Incursions, it seems like Marvel is setting him up to serve Molecule Man’s role in Avengers: Secret Wars. In the end, Molecule Man helped Reed Richards and his son, Franklin, to create the multiverse anew. That would be Doctor Strange’s perfect role, allowing him to save the multiverse after damaging it in Avengers: Doomsday.