Is Henry Cavill playing Doctor Doom?

Cameron Frew
Henry Cavill and Doctor Doom

The Fantastic Four cast has finally been unveiled – but will Henry Cavill be playing the team’s arch-nemesis Doctor Doom in the MCU?

Victor Von Doom, Latveria’s world-feared sorcerer and conqueror, should be known as one of the most formidable antagonists in any media, never mind just Marvel’s rogues gallery.

However, his name will likely be met with a shrug from non-comic book readers, who’ve endured two ineffectual adaptations of the villain in Tim Story’s mid-aughts films and Josh Trank’s abysmal 2015 reboot. Put it this way: if done right, he’s not a baddie that can be dispatched in a single movie.

With Kang predicted to take a bit of a backseat on the run-up to Secret Wars, Doctor Doom’s arrival is inevitable – so, will he be portrayed by Henry Cavill?

Is Henry Cavill playing Doctor Doom in the MCU?

A social media post claims that Henry Cavill is playing Doctor Doom – but that appears… untrue.

MCU_Updates, an X/Twitter account with just over 2,000 followers, tweeted that Cavill is playing Doom in The Fantastic Four. It even credited the news to Variety – however, it’s a total lie and no such announcement has been made.

This isn’t to say Cavill definitely won’t end up in the role, but we simply don’t know who’s playing him yet, nor is he necessarily expected to appear in The Fantastic Four (or at the least, he shouldn’t be its main villain). Mads Mikkelsen was once rumored to have been approached, but that’s never been confirmed.

Cavill may have spoken at length about potentially playing James Bond and other characters – but he’s never talked about Doom. Some fans would be happy if it happened, though, with one writing: “If this is true it would be one of their best casting choices by far.”

“If this is in fact true, this may end up being the best Marvel film,” another wrote. “I really hope those Henry Cavil rumors turn out being true. Him as Dr. Doom could be something special,” a third tweeted.

In the meantime, you can find out everything else we know about The Fantastic Four here.

About The Author

Cameron is Deputy TV and Movies Editor at Dexerto. He's an action movie aficionado, '80s obsessive, and Oscars enthusiast. He loves Invincible, but he's also a fan of The Boys, the MCU, The Chosen, and much more. You can contact him at cameron.frew@dexerto.com.