Robert Downey Jr, whose name has now become synonymous with Iron Man/Tony Stark, was initially offered a different superhero role at Marvel. In a recent conversation with Marvel boss Kevin Feige, director Jon Favreau said, "I remember you had all met with [Downey] already for like Doctor Doom or something on another project. I think he had come through on maybe Fantastic Four, so everybody sort of knew who he was.”
The interview, published by Marvel on YouTube, was a retrospective of Iron Man (2008), the film that started the MCU 15 years ago.
While Downey was in talks to play Victor Von Doom, Tuck Star-fame Julian McMahon ended up portraying the superhero in the 2005 film. Favreau agrees that choosing Downey for the role of Iron Man was the magical component, that ultimately made the film work.
“He was the puzzle piece that made it all work,” Favreau said. “I remember sitting down with the guy, and I was like, ‘He’s got that spark in him in his eye and he’s ready.’ That’s when we were in your office, and we were pointing to his headshot, saying, ‘We got to try to figure this out.'”
Favreau continued, “Once it was him, that’s when my life got a lot easier because he understood. He understood the voice of the character. And then one by one, people were just signing on board because now it became something interesting.”
Watch the full conversation between Favreau and Feige in the video below.