The Marvel Cinematic Universe has become a 33-film-wide mega-franchise, and it all started with 2008’s Iron Man (which is streamable for Disney+ subscribers). Sure, Marvel Entertainment had more than dipped its toe into superhero blockbusters prior to Robert Downey Jr. taking on the role of Tony Stark, with flicks like Blade, X-Men and Spider-Man. However, Jon Favreau’s movie -- the first production under the comic brand's independent studio -- indisputably changed cinema. With his superhero days behind him, RDJ recently opened up about working on the iconic film before the cinematic universe got big.
Robert Downey Jr. has been in the spotlight again as of late for his transformative performance as Lewis Strauss as part of the cast of Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer. As RDJ gets all the award season buzz for the supporting role, including being among 2024 Golden Globes winners on Sunday, the actor was asked about the role that changed his career forever. When addressing whether Iron Man gave him pause when it fell in his lap, Downey admitted that there wasn't much hesitation on his part for a few reasons:
No, because anyone who knows [Iron Man director] Jon Favreau — I remember seeing Swingers, and that monologue he has, and I was like, ‘And he wrote this? Who is this guy?’ Also, he went to Bronx Science, and he was doing the Improv in Chicago, and we’re both from Queens? We were meant to do this thing. Also, there was no real certainty that this was even going to take off. Iron Man was a second-tier hero. [Marvel] let the lunatics run the asylum for a little while, so it was completely an indie approach to a genre movie to begin with.
While speaking to The Hollywood Reporter during a roundtable featuring other actors being recognized this award season, the Chaplin star recalled that his interest in the superhero role stemmed from his excitement to work with Jon Favreau. Plus, there was absolutely no precedent at the time that Iron Man would truly become the chain reaction of a film it became when it was in the works. He recalled production on Favreau’s Iron Man being “completely an indie approach” to the superhero genre, and that was particularly exciting to him.
His co-star, Gwyneth Paltrow, spoke about making the Marvel movie way back when as well, sharing similar comments. One can definitely now say that the studio was wise to "let the lunatics run the asylum."
Nowadays, Robert Downey Jr. is arguably looked at as a franchise actor, considering he’s tied with Samuel L. Jackson for starring in the most Marvel movies. However, the actor got his start in small films and continues to seek out varied roles both in large and small productions. Surely, following his run as Tony Stark, he was in a potential franchise movie in Dolittle, but the actor has definitely stuck to his guns when it comes to his choices.
As RDJ finds himself in a new era of his career, during which he will not be returning back as Iron Man in upcoming Marvel movies, he has reflected on how that first movie and the greater MCU has affected his life. For one, he's still very much proud of his work in it, calling it one of three times he was “obsessed” with playing a role. At the same time, he acknowledges that comparisons of him with Tony Stark are not accurate. Overall, it's just great that he looks back on his experience on that great 2008 film fondly.
If you have yet to catch Robert Downey Jr. in his latest movie, know that Oppenheimer will begin streaming on Peacock on February 1.
