Robert Downey Jr. In Early Talks For Two ‘Avengers’ Sequels, But What About ‘Iron Man 4’?
Here’s the reason Marvel signs actors to long contracts whenever possible. After the success ofIron Man,Robert Downey, Jr.’s agents worked out a deal with Marvel in which the actor would receive a percentage of the first-day gross for future films. That’s what led him to nabbing between $50m and $75m forThe Avengers. Studios hate paying anyone up front like that whenever it can be avoided, and even Downey has laughed about the unusual pay rate he got to play Tony Stark.
Now, after the release ofIron Man 3, Downey has no contract with Marvel. In fact, a few actors have no contract to appear inThe Avengers 2, and after the billion-dollar-plus success of the first film, bringing them back together won’t be cheap. Marvel likes cheap, and so actors have begun to master the art of negotiating in public by letting us know that there’s a chance Marvel will make films without them. How’s that going to work out?
Well, Downey is reportedly in talks for two moreAvengersfilms, but there’s no plan set in stone just yet, and no public talk ofIron Man 4.
THRreports that Downey is in early talks forThe Avengers 2(dated for July 20, 2025) andThe Avengers 3(undated) but, at this point, notIron Man 4.Iron Man 3suggests that we might see someone other than Tony Stark in the Iron Man suit in the future (or no one at all) even if Downey is around as Stark. Whether the studio has the courage to build a fourth standalone movie around that idea or not is unknown.
Marvel’s practices with actors playing the Hulk and James Rhodes have proven that it can recast some characters without too much audience blowback.Don Cheadlecould theoretically anchor a fourth Iron Man film. But canThe Avengers 2fly with a cast that is changed by 50% from the first film?Deadlinesays thatChris Hemsworthisn’t signed forThe Avengers 2, and that “upfront pay, backend compensation, break even points and box office bonuses aren’t pinned down yet for several big stars and castmates.”
Downey is seen as a key point for the success of Marvel movies, with films that feature the actor doing considerably better than those that do not. Seems like there’s little chance of Marvel going forward with Avengers movies without him, even if he doesn’t have to wear a single piece of armor for those movies.
Then, of course, there’s the fact that everyone else involved withThe Avengersknows how much Downey made on that movie andIron Man 3, and also knows that their own paydays were far smaller. (Think a few hundred grand versus his tens of millions.) That complicates negotiations. As I’vediscussed before, Marvel pays people relatively little, especially at the outset, but the idea is that the exposure of starring in a Marvel movie pays off down the road at other studios. But stacking that up against Downey’s massive up-front payday might sting.
The short takeaway here is that Marvel has put itself in a position for some heated, complex deal negotiations that are going to play out in part in public. And some of those negotiations are going to be ugly — when Downey hits the point where he has made over $100m fromThe AvengersandIron Man 3alone it’s hard to stomach his contract hardball play. Maybe some of those millions could be diverted to the effects teams whoalsomake these movies fly, to make their schedules more workable and their paydays more appealing?
Meanwhile, THR also mentions that Marvel has scripts forBladeandMs. Marvelthat came out of the same writer’s program that produced an earlyGuardians of the Galaxydraft, and thatDoctor Strange, Iron Fist, Black PantherandThe Runawaysare all strong possible new films going forward. There’s a Marvel future without Robert Downey, Jr., but he suggested on a recent Daily Show appearance that he’s ready to negotiate, and we probably won’t see that particular future for a few more years.
