For years, Robert Downey Jr. had it made (still does, but I digress). Known all over the world as genius/billionaire/playboy/philanthropist Tony Stark in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Robert Downey Jr. and his spot-on performance captured the attention, affection, and admiration of fans from all backgrounds, with all areas of interest. Now, with his character dead and his tenure with Marvel Studios over, the celebrated actor has moved on. Now, he wants Ironheart to join the MCU.
He recently addressed his life after Iron Man in an illuminating interview. During this interview, conducted by Off-Camera With Sam Jones, Robert Downey Jr. discussed his post-MCU life and how safe he was, saying:
There's always a dependency on something that feels like a sure thing. It's the closest thing I will ever come to being a trust fund kid. And also there's a real bell-shaped curve. Initially by creating and associating and synergizing with Tony Stark and the Marvel universe and all this stuff, and being a good company man, but also being a little off kilter, being creative and getting into all these other partnerships, it was a time when -- it's like, what do they say? Owners start looking like their pets. Occasionally you would pull back from it and go 'All right, let me get off the teat of this archetype and let me see where I stand.' And you can feel really buffeted and you can be really spun out by it.
Robert Downey Jr. continued by stressing the separation of art from artist, remarking:
First thing you learn in theater arts: Aesthetic distance. ... I am not my work. I am not what I did with that studio. I am not that period of time that I spent playing this character. And it sucks, because the kid in all of us wants to be like, 'No. It's always going to be summer camp and we're all holding hands and singing 'Kumbaya.'
Clearly Robert Downey Jr. wants his characters to resonate with people, but he also wants his fans to recognize and respect that separation. But he still loves the franchise and his co-stars, even going so far as to build Chris Evans a Captain America Camaro.
And, to top things off, here's some very good news for you: The actor isn't done with comic book adaptions. One of Robert Downey Jr.'s newer projects is another comic-to-screen translation, this time of Jeff Lemire's Sweet Tooth, which Hulu picked up recently. His wife, producer Susan Downey, will assist in the production.
You can catch Robert Downey Jr. in Avengers: Endgame. The film may be slowing down at the box office but it doesn't have to. Go see this monumental film one last time!
