Robert Downey Jr’s Darkest Roles Before Avengers: Doomsday

After years of being the bloke who saves the day, Robert Downey Jr. is gearing up to step into Doctor Doom’s shoes and give the Avengers a proper challenge in Avengers: Doomsday. While he’s long been a crowd favourite for his heroics, Downey’s no stranger to playing the baddie. He’s taken on a handful of roles where he’s anything but the good guy, including a recent turn as Lewis Strauss in Oppenheimer.

Before he takes on his biggest villainous role yet, let’s have a look at five films where Downey’s characters have strayed to the dark side, starting with Christopher Nolan’s Oscar-winning epic.

Lewis Strauss in Oppenheimer

Downey delivered a standout performance as Lewis Strauss, the AEC Chairman, in the award-winning drama. Strauss is the main adversary in Oppenheimer’s 1950s storyline, working to strip the scientist of his Q clearance by accusing him of Communist ties. His actions, driven by jealousy or perhaps just plain pettiness, were brought to life with Downey’s trademark subtlety.

Reflecting on the role, Downey said:

Then he [Nolan] asked me if I was at all familiar with the character… I had a previous fair understanding of Strauss. Then I challenged a little bit the Mozart-Salieri of it all. I said, ‘I’m not sure in some ways that Strauss isn’t a bit the hero here,’ which kind of raised an eyebrow on Chris. I half-jokingly challenged him on whether Admiral Strauss hadn’t done everything that any patriotic American would’ve done.

Looking at Strauss from a different angle helped Downey deliver a performance that earned him his first Oscar in 2024.

Wayne Gale in Natural Born Killers

Natural Born Killers, inspired by real-life events, follows the story of Mickey and Mallory Knox, two lovers with traumatic pasts. Downey plays Wayne Gale, a ruthless journalist who exploits their crimes for ratings, turning their violence into a spectacle for the masses. Gale’s hunger for fame and success trumps any sense of morality, and he eventually gets caught up in the chaos himself, meeting a violent end at the hands of the very people he sensationalised.

Paul Avery in Zodiac

Zodiac remains a top-tier thriller, with Downey joining a stellar cast as Paul Avery. While not a classic villain, Avery is a self-destructive journalist whose obsession with the Zodiac case leads him down a dark path. His life spirals into paranoia and alcoholism, making him more of a cautionary tale than a hero.

Dr. Kozak in The Shaggy Dog

This reboot of the 1959 classic sees Downey as Dr. Kozak, a scientist with a dodgy agenda. After a prosecutor is bitten by a centuries-old sheepdog, he uncovers Kozak’s unethical experiments with the dog’s DNA, all in the pursuit of eternal youth. Despite the film’s comedic tone, Downey’s portrayal of Kozak is genuinely unsettling, even if critics weren’t too keen on the film itself.

John Royce in U.S. Marshals

In the 1998 sequel to The Fugitive, Downey plays Special Agent John Royce, who joins a team hunting a fugitive but is later revealed as the mole. Royce not only frames the fugitive but also betrays his own team, leading to a classic twist. It’s a role that shows Downey’s knack for playing characters with hidden motives.

With these performances under his belt, it’s no wonder fans are keen to see how he’ll tackle Doctor Doom. Avengers: Doomsday is set to hit cinemas on 18 December 2026.