Robert Downey Jr. on “Iron Man:” ‘Why Give Up the Belt…?’
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ABC/Ida Mae Astute(NEW YORK) — In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, it seems that Robert Downey Jr. would certainly be up for a fourth Iron Man film.
On the set of Avengers: Age of Ultron, Forbes’ highest-earning actor in Hollywood — thanks in no small part to his multi-million-dollar Marvel deal that kept him playing Tony Stark through that sequel — Downey said, “Why give up the belt when it feels like you can barely get jabbed?” He then added, however, “Most people are saying that right when they get knocked out.”
The actor had expressed that as any actor’s price tag rises as a long-running series continues, so does the specter of the role being recast, though in the past he’s admitted, “I would really hate for someone else to think they could step into my shoes.”
Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige has said he sees Iron Man as on par with James Bond or Batman — an iconic character that will live on onscreen for years, and thus would logically have to be recast at some point.
Luckily for Downey, most Marvel fans worldwide agree — and the box office bears it out — that his red-and-gold iron boots would be tough to fill, as the actor is now synonymous with the billionaire, genius, playboy philanthropist he brought to life onscreen.
Even comic book legend Stan Lee, co-creator of Tony Stark/Iron Man, agrees. He recently told ABC News Radio, “I think that Robert Downey Jr. thinks he is Tony Stark…Nobody can play the role better than him. He is Tony Stark.”
For now, it seems Downey is optimistic he’ll get a shot at an Iron Man 4, telling EW, “It’s down to Kevin and [Marvel Entertainment CEO] Ike [Perlmutter] and Disney to come to us with what the proposal is, and that’s on us to agree or disagree,” allowing, “When things are going great, there’s a lot of agreement.”
Falling into the “great” category, no doubt, is the fact that every Iron Man movie has out-grossed its predecessor, leading up to the staggering 1.3-billion-dollar take of the last installment.
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