Fans react after Robert Downey Jr. claims his MCU work is “some of the best”
Marvel StudiosRobert Downey Jr. has given us some great performances as Iron Man in the MCU, but he claims said acting is overlooked due it being of the superhero genre.
Robert Downey Jr. is known for a lot of roles, but arguably his best is as Tony Stark in the MCU‘s Iron Man. With an 11 year run, he quickly became one of the most iconic members of the franchise, and his exit from said franchise in Avengers: Endgame still remains a tearfully memorable pop culture moment.
In an age where Marvel appears to be in a decline of both box office draws and public opinion, some have chosen to view superhero movies as nothing more than “theme park movies,” as acclaimed director Martin Scorsese has infamously said. Whether or not this interpretation is correct, this opinion does overlook the hard work that actors may have put into their superhero roles.
And now, Downey Jr. has gone on record to rectify that, discussing how proud he is of his acting work in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Fans praise Robert Downey Jr.’s run as Iron Man
Speaking on Rob Lowe’s “Literally!” podcast, the actor revealed that with Marvel, “I think I did some of the best work I will ever do, but it went a little bit unnoticed because of the genre.”
This also comes off of his Variety Actors on Actors appearance, in which he stated to fellow Marvel actor Mark Ruffalo that “I hate it when people poo-poo a genre, because they’re all hard, and they’re all high-art when they’re done well.”
This opinion doesn’t appear to be untrue. While Downey Jr. is currently expected to receive an Oscar nomination for his supporting role in Christopher Nolan’s summer blockbuster Oppenheimer, and has already won a Golden Globe for said role, he received no such nominations or awards for any of his multiple appearances in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
But whether or not the Academy Awards recognise his work in the superhero genre, his fans certainly have. And many took to X (formerly Twitter) to advocate for how well he had performed as Tony Stark.
One user called his acting “phenomenal, but not recognized because of the genre, rdj is absolutely right in saying that.”
“Dude beautifully portrayed a flawed man with severe PTSD for over a decade. He put his heart and soul into the movies and even ripped out his own heart in the movie” noted another.
Check out other responses below:
There have been plenty of rumors about Downey Jr. potentially stepping back into Tony Stark’s iron shoes for the MCU, but so far nothing is confirmed.
Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige even stated to Variety last month that he was hesitant to the idea due to how “hard” Downey Jr. had worked at the role: “We all worked very hard for many years to get to that [ending for Iron Man], and we would never want to magically undo it in any way.”
