Robert Downey Jr. Reflects on His Legendary MCU Run

It’s been five years since we saw Tony Stark sacrifice himself in Avengers: Endgame. Since then, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has continued—but without Iron Man, whom Robert Downey Jr. played for over a decade. Even though Downey Jr. is firmly in the next phase of his career—with starring roles in Oppenheimer and The Sympathizer—he reflects fondly on his MCU days.

In Esquire’s new episode of "Explain This," the actor spoke about the friendships he made during his Marvel tenure. "I believe the Marvel experience creates tight-knit relationships because it had never really been done before—making a cinematic universe," he said. "And everyone needed to get points on the board. Every franchise, this and that, needed to work and succeed, and there was a particular ten-ish year run where it just had this quantum effect." While starring as Tony Stark, Downey Jr. worked alongside a brilliant cast, which included Gwyneth Paltrow, Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Scarlett Johansson, Brie Larson, and Don Cheadle.

Though the cast obviously had busy work schedules at the time, Downey Jr. said they managed to get together for a celebratory meal. “I remember having this dinner party, shooting in Atlanta around the time of Infinity War,” he said. “It was one of the last times you could get everybody from the franchises together, and I remember that being a special night.”

As of right now, we can’t count on another on-screen reunion, though Downey Jr. admitted he’d "happily" return to the Marvel franchise if the MCU gods allowed it. "It’s too integral a part of my DNA,” he said in our latest cover story. "That role chose me. And look, I always say, 'Never, ever, bet against Kevin Feige. It’s a losing bet. He’s the house. He will always win.'"

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