When Robert Downey Jr. plays Doctor Doom he better keep the mask on

polygon.com:

Robert Downey Jr.’s return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, announced Saturday at San Diego Comic-Con, would have been a surprise any way you slice it. But the fact that he’s not returning to play Iron Man, founder of the Avengers, but to play Doctor Doom, archenemy of the Fantastic Four, is nearly bewildering.

One question has rung out particularly loudly in the wake of the news: How can Downey Jr. play Doom when everybody in the MCU is already familiar with his face as Tony Stark? Sure, Marvel Comics has had Tony Stark become Doctor Doom, and Victor von Doom has become Iron Man. It’s a 60-year-old, continually running comic book continuity, my friend. Who hasn’t been Doctor Doom or Iron Man? Pretty sure I was Iron Man for an issue or two in 1989.

But there’s one really simple answer to this question. It’s an obvious step toward getting Doctor Doom right, yet it’s something Hollywood has steadfastly refused to do until now.

Downey Jr. should keep that fucking mask on.

It’s well known that Hollywood struggles with how to portray fully masked characters. Screen actors don’t like signing up for roles where they are not actually recognizable on screen, getting that star recognition that might turn them into (or keep them as) household names. Any actor might be skeptical about a role where their metaphorical hands — which is to say, their literal face — are tied behind their back.

Karl Urban insisted on keeping his helmet on in Dredd, but called it a “very challenging process.” Spike Lee admitted in the director’s commentary of Inside Man that he tweaked the movie’s script after hearing Clive Owen’s concerns. Marvel movies have historically made tons of concessions in this area: Spider-Man, Ant-Man, the Wasp, Black Panther, Iron Man, and War Machine are constantly whipping off their masks or helmets for pivotal conversations, even in the thick of combat. The innovation of the inside-the-helmet camera view was a brilliant solution to the problem, without which the