Written By Mikey Sutton • Editor-in-Chief • Owner
Robert Downey Jr.‘s future in the MCU is now thrown into doubt. On May 23, 2020, I initially scooped that Robert Downey Jr. would fly back into the MCU.
At the time, insiders told me that he returns in Avengers: Secret Wars. Since then, rumors from various media outlets have echoed the same.
However, a Marvel Studios executive offered a crushing update on its possibility. Stephen Broussard threw water onto the fire. According to Broussard, Marvel Studios has moved on from Robert Downey Jr.
Nevertheless, he didn’t include any details. Whether the decision belonged to Marvel Studios or Robert Downey Jr. remains unanswered.
Robert Downey Jr.’s Rumored MCU Comeback Gets Crushing Update
Image: Marvel Studios
Broussard stated:
“Well, I think one of the meta-narratives of Phase Four was about new characters. It was about new people stepping into mantles. If you look at, like, Cassie [Lang in Quantumania] getting a suit and Kate Bishop [in Hawkeye], new characters being introduced like Jack in Werewolf by Night. After these first 10 years of Marvel storytelling, torches are being passed, like with Robert Downey Jr. no longer being [on the] table and stuff like that. So it was kind of like a new generation stepping to the forefront which, again, has always happened in the comics.”
Certainly, Tony Stark’s death in Avengers: Endgame became an emotionally devastating farewell. Without a doubt, bringing back Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark would cheapen it.
On the contrary, the MCU is in the midst of the Multiverse Saga. Thus, Robert Downey Jr. come back as Stark variant. Or the subject of time travel.
Why not?
Indeed, Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine leaps into the MCU in Deadpool 3. This is years after the character’s death in Logan.
Therefore, I’m not buying it. And neither should you. Andrew Garfield spent months denying his casting in Spider-Man: No Way Home. Given that, many fans wish Robert Downey Jr. would follow suit.
After all, RDJ never had the opportunity to interact with the original Fox actors, such as Jackman and Ryan Reynolds. That includes the rest of the X-Men or any of the Fantastic Four. Indeed, there are missed opportunities here.
Robert Downey Jr.’s Rumored MCU Comeback Gets Crushing Update
Image: Marvel Studios
If RDJ is gone for good, this won’t be a Henry Cavill situation. DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn pulled the rug from under the fans to emphasize his own vision.