When Kevin Feige Revealed Why Iron Man Would Never Return Despite Robert Downey Jr.’s Comeback As Doctor Doom: “We Are Going To Keep…”
Robert Downey Jr. is returning to Marvel as Doctor Doom, but he once ruled the world as Iron Man. Here’s why his character had no chance of return!
What Did Kevin Feige Once Say About Robert Downey Jr.’s Possible Return As Iron Man?(Photo Credit –Wikimedia/Facebook)
Ever since Iron Man was released in 2008, people fell in love with Robert Downey Jr.’s portrayal of the Marvel superhero. He wooed us with his charms and tricks as Tony Stark, a “billionaire, genius, and a playboy.” He created a unique weaponized suit of armor while being captive in an Afghan cave. Stark came out of it and not only ruled the Marvel world as Iron Man but also ruled over millions of fans’ hearts.
Downey Jr. continued to appear as Iron Man for years in his standalone movies and the Avengers installments. The actor made the character incredibly iconic and approachable to the audience. However, when he died in Avengers: Endgame in 2019, the whole fandom was heartbroken and devastated.
Many fans started to speculate about his possible return to the universe. While RDJ shed his suit to put on Doctor Doom’s armor, the void for Iron Man remained. Despite the consistent demands, Marvel boss Kevin Feige once shared why the character of Iron Man needed to be put down with no possibility of a proper comeback.
Robert Downey Jr. audition for Iron Man pic.twitter.com/6m6F9MgOxp
— internet hall of fame (@InternetH0F) July 9, 2025
What Did Kevin Feige Say About Iron Man’s Return?
Despite the huge fanbase and the continuous buzz about Robert Downey Jr.’s return as Iron Man after the character’s death, Kevin Feige confirmed that he will not return in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Iron Man. In a 2023 interview with Vanity Fair, Feige shared, “We are going to keep that moment and not touch that moment again.”
He further explained, while discussing the character’s last moments in the 2019 movie, “We all worked very hard for many years to get to that, and we would never want to magically undo it in any way.”
3 years ago, Tony Stark sacrificed himself to save the Universe pic.twitter.com/qBvcn76LSI
— Marvel Perfect Gifs & Clips (@MCUPerfectGifs) April 26, 2022
How Was Robert Downey Jr. Cast As Iron Man?
Many might not know that before Downey, Timothy Olyphant was the first choice to be Iron Man. It’s not unknown that back then, Jon Favreau, Kevin Feige, and former Marvel president David Maisel tried to convince Marvel’s board to take the Sherlock Holmes actor. But, because of his notorious past, the board was confused and nervous at the same time.
Talking about Downey’s debut as Iron Man, Kevin Feige said, “It purely came down to the Marvel board being nervous at putting all of their chips in their future films on somebody who famously had those legal troubles in the past. I wasn’t very good — and I’m still not great — at taking no for an answer. But I also don’t pound my chest to try to get my way. I try to figure out ways to make it as clear to other people why we should head in a direction. And that’s when the idea of a screen test came up.”
Well, no other actor could have portrayed Iron Man so realistically as Robert Downey Jr., and now the Oscar-winner is gearing up to return to the MCU as the most villainous character, Doctor Doom. RDJ’s return in a new role will mark a new chapter in the MCU, starting with Avengers: Doomsday.
Presenting Victor Von Doom.
Robert Downey Jr. stars in Marvel Studios’ Avengers: Doomsday, in theaters May 2026. #SDCC pic.twitter.com/xWQx9owZjG
— Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) July 28, 2024
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