The Marvel Cinematic Universe has a plethora of beloved characters over the years but nothing can beat the original Avengers when it comes to playing favorites. One of those is Tony Stark who marked the beginning and the end of an era with the Infinity War. Who could ever forget the words "I am Iron Man"? Despite the rumors on the original Avengers team coming back together, Kevin Feige seemingly shuts this down as he confirms that Robert Downey Jr. will never be back to suit up again as the famous hero.
Recently, a rumor surfaced that the original Avengers would be coming back together to do another film and this was immediately shut down by the actors playing the role of the Mightiest Heroes on Earth. The original team is now cut down to half with the first half who already made their goodbyes in Endgame like Iron Man who snapped Thanos and the villains affiliated with the Mad Titan, Black Widow who sacrificed himself so that Hawkeye could live, and Captain America growing old to live his life. The others are Hawkeye who may already have a protégé with Kate Bishop, Hulk who just introduced his child in She-Hulk: Attorney At Law, and Thor who will reportedly get his fifth film in the near future. Now, there is no question that Robert Downey Jr. played a huge part of the franchise as Iron Man but unfortunately, he will not be reprising the role.
What legacy did Robert Downey Jr. leave in the MCU?
In 2008, Robert Downey Jr. first suited up as the genius, playboy billionaire who oversees Stark Tech which he inherited from his father, Howard Stark. When he first introduced himself to the world, he said, "I am Iron Man." Thins went on full circle in 2019 in Avengers: Endgame as Tony Stark proved to be the biggest hero of the ensemble film as the one who obliterated Thanos and his cronies with the same words, "I am Iron Man." With just how iconic Robert Downey Jr. is as Tony Stark and despite the rumors on the return of the original Avengers, Kevin Feige spoke to Vanity Fair as regards the actor's reprisal of the role, "We are going to keep that moment and not touch that moment again. We all worked very hard for many years to get to that, and we would never want to magically undo it in any way."
Joe Russo, Endgame director, also revealed how magical and emotional the final scene of Iron Man was in Endgame. Russo said, "Everybody had moved on emotionally. We promised it would be the last time we made him do it — ever." That moment where Tony Stark made the snap, it forever remained in the hearts of possibly every single Marvel fan across the world that even Marvel Studios would not change a thing about it.
All the Iron Man movies and those which include Robert Downey Jr.'s character are all available to stream on Disney Plus.
