Doctor Doom’s Plan for Franklin Richards: Theories for Avengers: Doomsday

Spoiler alert! This article contains spoilers for The Fantastic Four: First Steps

After the shocking post-credits scene in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, there are some highly compelling theories regarding why Doctor Doom wants Franklin Richards, and how this might impact Avengers: Doomsday. The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ post-credits scene might be one of the most intriguing teases Marvel has dropped in years. It offered direct, and chilling, possibilities for Avengers: Doomsday.

Introduced in the First Steps post-credits scene, Sue Storm momentarily leaves her infant son Franklin in his crib. When she returns, she’s startled to find a mysterious figure in a green cloak quietly playing with the baby. His face is never shown, but the ominous presence and signature cloak make it obvious – this is Doctor Doom.

With Robert Downey Jr. confirmed to star as Doom in Avengers: Doomsday, the scene strongly implies that Franklin will play a major role in the villain’s plan. It also hints at something bigger: First Steps is set in Earth-828, not Earth-616. Doom’s interest in Franklin may be the key to how he transitions between universes.

In Marvel Comics, Franklin Richards is one of the most powerful beings in existence. That makes him both a precious asset and a potential weapon. Whether Doom’s intentions are personal, practical, or purely about acquiring power, the fact that he’s already interacted with Franklin raises the stakes for Doomsday and the conclusion of the Multiverse Saga.

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Doom Wants Franklin’s Universe-Creating Powers To Make Battleworld

Franklin Richards’ reality-warping abilities are legendary in Marvel Comics. Even as a child, he has created pocket universes from scratch, shaped cosmic laws, and rebuilt broken realities. If the MCU’s Franklin has even a fraction of that potential, he could be the perfect tool for Doctor Doom to construct Battleworld, a central location in Secret Wars.

In the comics event, Doom stole the Beyonders’ powers and merged fragments of destroyed realities into a patchwork planet, ruling it as a godlike figure. For the MCU, Doom might skip the Beyonders entirely. He could instead harness Franklin’s powers to create his own version of Battleworld.

This would allow Marvel Studios to keep the spirit of the comic event while streamlining the narrative. The fact that Doomsday precedes Avengers: Secret Wars supports this theory, as it would set up the sequel’s central battleground. By controlling Franklin, Doom wouldn’t just have an incredibly powerful pawn – he’d have the means to rewrite the rules of existence itself.

This theory also opens the door to Doom playing the “God Emperor” role from the comics. This would certainly be fitting as the saga’s final boss. It would rightly also position Franklin not merely as a child in need of protection, but as the MCU’s most dangerous living weapon, one whose abilities could decide the fate of every surviving universe.

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Doom Wants Franklin’s Healing Powers To Fix His Scarred Face

Doctor Doom’s scarred visage is one of the most iconic aspects of his comic book identity. After a failed experiment exploded, Victor Von Doom was left with disfiguring injuries, prompting him to wear his famous mask. Yet in the MCU, Robert Downey Jr.’s Doom has been confirmed to go unmasked in Avengers: Doomsday.

That raises questions about whether he was scarred at all or perhaps found a way to heal himself. At the end of The Fantastic Four: First Steps, Franklin demonstrates incredible healing powers, reviving Sue Storm after she died in battle. It is possible Doom sees Franklin as the only being capable of restoring his face to perfection.

This could be precisely what occurred in the First Steps post-credits scene. Franklin, in his playful manner, may have just restored Doom’s face in time for RDJ’s mask-less entrance. This motivation would humanize Doom in a way not yet seen in the MCU – beneath the ambition and menace lies a man consumed by vanity, haunted by his own reflection.

It makes little sense to cast a celebrated actor and hide them permanently beneath a mask. It makes even less sense to do so when his appearance adds a whole new layer of intrigue as Iron Man’s look-alike. His interaction with Franklin could allow Doom to retain this essential comic book history while also allowing RDJ’s Doom to roam mask-free.

While this could mean that Doom’s plans for Franklin were short-term, they could directly connect him with Doom’s grander schemes. Curing his disfigurement could be the first step toward building the godlike image he wants the multiverse to see. It could also embolden him significantly after surmounting such a fundamental character trait.

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Doom Wants Franklin To Coerce Reed Richards Into Helping Him Traverse The Multiverse

In First Steps, Reed Richards’ teleportation experiments are a key subplot. Initially tested on simple objects like eggs, the tech eventually plays a role in sending Galactus away. It’s speculated that this technology will allow the Fantastic Four to travel from Earth-828 to Earth-616, officially joining the main MCU timeline.

If Doom is plotting a multiversal takeover, this tech would be invaluable – especially if he wants to gather alternate versions of himself or manipulate incursion events. However, Reed would never willingly help Doom, making Franklin the perfect bargaining chip. By holding the child hostage, Doom could force Reed to grant him access to his multiverse gateway.

This theory fits neatly into the high-stakes family dynamic that has always defined the Fantastic Four’s best stories. It also dovetails with Marvel Studios’ likely plans for Doomsday to escalate the multiverse storyline toward its climax in Secret Wars. Reed’s tech could be Doom’s key to navigating collapsing universes, avoiding incursions, and cherry-picking realities to conquer.

If true, Franklin’s kidnapping wouldn’t just be a personal crisis for Sue and Reed, it would become the MCU’s next major multiversal threat. The emotional stakes of parents racing to save their son would perfectly complement the larger, reality-spanning danger Doom represents. It would ensure Doomsday delivers both intimate character drama and epic-scale spectacle.

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Doctor Doom Is Simply Attracted To Franklin’s Power

Sometimes the simplest explanation is also the most dangerous: Doctor Doom may just want Franklin’s powers for himself. In the comics, Franklin has demonstrated abilities on par with cosmic gods – creating universes, resurrecting the dead, bending time and space. For a character as ambitious as Doom, such power would be irresistible.

In this scenario, Doom’s plan in Doomsday could involve stealing or replicating Franklin’s abilities, immediately elevating him to multiversal supremacy. This would align Doom’s arc with his comic counterpart’s rise to godhood in Secret Wars, while still keeping the MCU’s path unique. If Doom absorbs Franklin’s abilities, he could effectively rewrite reality on a whim.

This would make him an unprecedented threat to both the Avengers and the Fantastic Four. This theory also sets Franklin up as a recurring target in future MCU phases. His existence alone would be a constant source of danger.

It would make Doom the kind of villain who not only challenges heroes in battle, but also forces them to protect someone whose powers could end everything. The simplicity of this motive is also its strength; it requires no convoluted backstory, just the universal truth that villains crave power For Doom, Franklin himself might be the ultimate prize.

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Earth-828 Doom Is Actually Reed Richards

One of the most mind-bending theories suggests that Earth-828’s Doom isn’t Victor Von Doom at all – it’s Reed Richards. This would explain why Franklin is so comfortable with him in the First Steps post-credits scene; he may recognize him as his father. A theory posited by Screen Rant suggests that Robert Downey Jr.’s Doom is just one variant.

It’s possible that the MCU’s main Doom will be played by Pedro Pascal, who also portrays Earth-828 Reed Richards. In this twist, Reed could have suffered a tragedy that drove him to adopt Doom’s mantle, perhaps even merging elements of science and sorcery to achieve his goals. It’s suggested that RDJ’s casting could be an elaborate misdirect.

This would make Doomsday a deeply personal story. The Fantastic Four wouldn’t just be fighting a villain, they’d be confronting a corrupted version of their own leader. It would also give Doom’s relationship with Franklin an unsettling dimension.

He would genuinely care for the child, even if he manipulates events to serve his own ends. Such a reveal would redefine the emotional stakes of the Multiverse Saga, turning a straightforward villain plot into a Shakespearean family tragedy on a cosmic scale. This would explain neatly the connection between Doctor Doom and Franklin Richards in advance of Avengers: Doomsday.