For an extended whereas there, it appeared like Marvel and Robert Downey Jr. had a virtually symbiotic relationship, one which was mutually useful… Till it all of a sudden wasn’t.
Downey’s universally adored efficiency as Iron Man helped steer the MCU to meteoric greatness for its first 11 years of existence, whereas Marvel helped restore Downey’s once-ruined status and reinstall him in Hollywood as one of the vital profitable actors round. After which Tony Stark died in Avengers: Endgame. Marvel’s by no means been the identical since and that seemed to be true of Downey’s profession as nicely when he adopted up years of field workplace success with 2020’s dire Doolittle.
Enter Oppenheimer, with Downey’s left-field, against-type casting as Lewis Strauss making him a shoe-in for the Finest Supporting Actor Oscar since final summer time. Certain sufficient, the 96th Academy Awards went and gave the golden gong to the person who as soon as pretended to pee in his superhero swimsuit in Iron Man 2. It’s an incredible and well-deserved achievement, little question about it, however it could have simply put the ultimate nail within the coffin of Downey’s potential MCU comeback.
Downey’s Oscar acceptance speech makes clear an MCU return is unlikely to occur
Though he could have swaggered onto the stage like Tony Stark attending one among his personal Stark Expos, Downey’s Oscar acceptance speech supplied one more, and maybe the last word, reminder that he’s days because the Armored Avenger actually are over. “Right here’s my little secret,” Downey stated when thanking director Christopher Nolan and producer Emma Thomas for casting him within the first place. “I wanted this job greater than it wanted me.”
This admission echoes related feedback Downey has made all through this awards season during which the actor paints himself as somebody who wanted a critical leg-up when it comes to incomes the business’s respect and credibility amongst his friends after so lengthy making mainstream blockbusters. That’s to not say that Downey is dismissive of his work for Marvel, as he personally believes he gave a few of his “finest work” whereas taking part in Iron Man. The issue, for him, is that few, exterior of diehard MCU followers, acknowledged that.
“I felt so uncovered after being within the cocoon of Marvel the place I believe I did a number of the finest work I’ll ever do, but it surely went a bit bit unnoticed due to the style,” Downey stated on an episode of Rob Lowe’s podcast, Actually!.
Now that he has unarguably damaged out of his Marvel cocoon and been reborn as an Oscar-winning character actor (this was Downey’s third nomination however first win), it appears there’s little probability that he would resolve to come back again for that a lot hoped for multiversal cameo later down the road. It was broadly reported final yr that Marvel Studios was contemplating bringing again Downey, Chris Evans, and Scarlett Johansson to spice up flagging curiosity within the franchise, a rumor that even Kevin Feige point-blank denying it couldn’t destroy. It simply made sense, in any case, for Downey to show up in Avengers: Secret Wars for a fan-pleasing reprisal.
Nonetheless, with RDJ clearly wanting to distance himself from Marvel as a lot as he can — even when he stays happy with his efficiency throughout his 10 MCU films — and along with his Oscar win little question launching 100 completely different job provides, there actually appears no approach that he’ll return as Iron Man for the rest of the Multiverse Saga. Now there’s a stark fact for you.