Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for Fantastic Four: First Steps
Doctor Doom has officially made his MCU debut in Fantastic Four: First Steps. Setting up the future with next year’s Avengers: Doomsday, Fantastic Four’s post-credits scene featured the highly anticipated villain, though only from behind as he encountered young Franklin Richards. Naturally, the big question now is what Doom’s plans might be for the son of Mister Fantastic and The Invisible Woman.
Fantastic Four: First Steps’ first post-credits scene takes place four years later. Reading to young Franklin, Sue returns to the living room to see Doctor Doom kneeling before the boy. Covered by a green hood while holding his iconic metal mask by his side, Doom faces away from the camera as Franklin touches his face. Here’s why the MCU’s Doctor Doom most likely wants Franklin and his power.
Doctor Doom Likely Wants Franklin Richards For His Power
Franklin Is Now The MCU’s Most Powerful Being
Having been concerned about how his and Sue Storm’s cosmically altered DNA might affect their child’s birth, Reed Richards’ fears are proven true when Galactus himself confirms Franklin’s infinite power. Possessing the Power Cosmic, Galactus claims that Franklin could end his never-ending hunger and could even become his successor as the cosmos’ required Devourer of Worlds.
Likewise, the phenomenal power at Baby Franklin’s fingertips was further proven when he resurrected his mother at the end of Fantastic Four: First Steps. Just like in the original Marvel Comics, Franklin Richards is one of the most powerful beings in the entire multiverse, capable of rewriting reality on a whim as a being of near-limitless creation.
Naturally, Franklin’s omnipotent powers could be used for all sorts of purposes, both bad and good. For that reason, a power-seeking antagonist like Doctor Doom wanting Franklin makes all sorts of sense, especially if the MCU’s Doom carries the same ego and pride as his comics counterpart, believing only he can improve and “save” the world.
Considering previous comments from the Russo Brothers about Doctor Doom and their interest in villains who believe themselves to be the hero of their own story, it follows that Robert Downey Jr.’s Doom will similarly see himself as a savior. Perhaps Doom can now achieve his goals with Franklin at his side, making use of the boy’s astounding cosmic powers.
How Franklin Richards Could Be Of Use To Doctor Doom In Avengers: Doomsday
Saving/Remaking The Multiverse In Doom’s Image
At the moment, we don’t yet know the plot of next year’s Avengers: Doomsday, nor the following year’s Avengers: Secret Wars in 2027, which is set to bring the MCU’s entire Multiverse Saga to a close. That being said, the inclusion of Doctor Doom and the Secret Wars тιтle does imply narrative parallels to the 1984 and 2015 comic events of the same name.
2015’s Secret Wars in particular was a multiverse-ending epic with Doom at its center. In the face of the multiverse’s imminent death via multiple incursions, only the main Marvel reality of Earth-616 remained alongside Earth-1610, the Ultimate Universe (home to Miles Morales).
As the two worlds neared a collision that would have ended existence in its entirety, it was Doctor Doom who managed to take the remnants of various realities, salvaging them together as a patchwork plane of existence known as Battleworld. However, he also remade this reality in his image, ruling over all as God Emperor Doom.
Doctor Doom was only able to do all of this with help from the Molecule Man, whom he used to steal the power of the Beyonders to create his Battleworld. At the end of Secret Wars, Doom was defeated after the Molecule Man was freed from his prison. Once Battleworld was undone, Reed Richards worked to rebuild the multiverse with help from Franklin and his powers of creation.
The MCU may try to streamline the process with Doom using Franklin to remake the multiverse in his image from the get-go. It’s also worth remembering that Loki is now overseeing the stability of the multiverse itself as keeper of timelines, and could arguably be a solid Beyonder subsтιтute in the MCU.
Tom Hiddleston is confirmed to appear in Avengers: Doomsday, despite Loki’s current status as a “God of Time”, existing beyond the multiverse itself.
Keeping that in mind, I would not be surprised if Franklin and/or Loki became critical pieces to Doom’s plans in Avengers: Doomsday, especially as the preceding crossover movie ahead of the MCU’s Secret Wars.
Regardless, it’s going to be fascinating to see the full extent of Doctor Doom’s plans and how they’ll involve Franklin Richards, as well as learning the new MCU villain’s history/multiversal background. After all, there’s likely a dark reason why the classic Marvel foe is being played by Robert Downey Jr.
Fantastic Four: First Steps is now playing in theaters from Marvel Studios.
