Despite what you may have heard from fanboys online, Robert Downey Jr.‘s Iron Man will not return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). This was confirmed- pretty unequivocally- by Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige. The resurrection of Tony Stark after his heroic death in “Avengers: Endgame” has been the subject of rumor and delusional speculation.
“We are going to keep that moment and not touch that moment again,” Feige said while talking about Tony Stark’s sacrifice. “We all worked very hard for many years to get to that, and we would never want to magically undo it in any way.”
Downey Jr. starred in 2008’s “Iron Man.” He was almost didn’t get cast due to his reputation at the time. Director Jon Favreau vied for the actor as Tony Stark, despite the arrests for drug possession. It’s pretty hard to envision the MCU without RDJr. playing the role many argue was made for him. According to former Marvel Studios President David Maisel, Timothy Olyphant (“Deadwood,” “Book of Boba Fett“) was the leading contender.
“It purely came down to the Marvel board being nervous at putting all of their chips in their future films on somebody who famously had those legal troubles in the past,” Feige said about Downey Jr.’s arrest. “I wasn’t very good – and I’m still not great – at taking no for an answer. But I also don’t pound my chest to try to get my way. I try to figure out ways to make it as clear to other people why we should head in a direction. And that’s when the idea of a screen test came up.”
Over the course of 11 years, RDJr. appeared in nine Marvel Studios films as Tony Stark/Iron Man. It is good to know his character arc won’t be undone with a “magical” return. It would undo one of the most powerful moments from the MCU. You can catch all of the “Avengers” films on Disney+.
