Directors Joe and Anthony Russo, collectively known as the Russo Brothers, recently shared that they believe Robert Downey Jr.’s spontaneity kept him invested in Iron Man‘s 10-year Marvel Cinematic Universe journey.
Speaking with Vanity Fair for its cover story about Downey, Joe Russo explained how the actor was notorious on set for “throwing the plan out the window and climbing on top of the couch and whatever, sort of going off-book.” He added, “He does this because he likes to surprise himself. He likes to keep things fresh. He lights up for that.”
Anthony Russo stated that he believes there is “no other way that he could have played that character for 10 movies unless he was doing that. Robert has certainly lived a complicated life. He understands the stakes, he understands loss, he understands the turns life can take between ups and downs. He’s always looking for that level of depth, that level of complexity. I think he knows that’s what we all come to movies for in the first place.”
The Russos directed Downey’s final Iron Man performances
The Russo Brothers joined the MCU in 2012 to direct Captain America: The Winter Soldier, which was released in theaters in 2014 as part of the franchise’s Phase 2. They returned to direct 2016’s Captain America: Civil War, which featured their first collaboration with Downey’s Iron Man. The Russos also directed Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and Avengers: Endgame (2019), which were shot back-to-back. The two-part crossover epic marked the final on-screen appearance of Downey as Tony Stark/Iron Man. Variants of the superhero have continued to appear in the MCU animated series, What If…?, voiced by Mick Wingert.
While Iron Man remains a fan-favorite character four years after his death in Endgame, Marvel Studios reportedly has no plans to resurrect the Avenger for its Multiverse Saga. “We are going to keep that moment and not touch that moment again,” Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige told Vanity Fair. “We all worked very hard for many years to get to that, and we would never want to magically undo it in any way.”
Marvel fans can watch all 10 of Downey’s MCU film appearances, from Iron Man to Avengers: Endgame, on Disney+.
