We May Have Seen The Last Of Robert Downey Jr. As Iron Man

Other than the revelation that the Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver are joining Marvel’s The Avengers 2: On The Move, we’ve been a little light in the super awesome comic book movie rumors and news in the past week or so. That’s why it was good that Entertainment Weekly asked the question – is this the end of Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man?

RDJ has completed his contract as the billionaire playboy Tony Stark, and he’s not actually under contract to play Iron Man again in the Avengers sequel. Add to that the fact that Gwyneth Paltrow recently told Kevin McCarthy that she doesn’t believe there will be an Iron Man 4 – “I think we’re done with Iron Man” – and there’s not currently a fourth film on the extensive Marvel docket. So what does that mean for Avengers 2?

Downey has fulfilled all his contractual obligations to play the hero that made him a blockbuster star, and there’s currently no Iron Man 4 on Marvel’s slate, which spans the next several years. Everyone involved — including Downey himself — expects he’ll at least return for writer-director Joss Whedon’s Avengers 2 in 2015, but Iron Man 3 doesn’t exactly leave the billionaire/playboy/philanthropist that we know and love in mint condition.

I don’t get to see Iron Man 3 until tomorrow, because my plans to see it this morning were killed when Vince decided that he was taking a spa day, so I don’t know what the “controversial ending” is that EW speaks of, but I’ll reiterate my belief that this is suspense for the sake of news, in that Downey made a reported $50 million for Marvel’s The Avengers so he’d be foolish to turn down the literal assload of money that he would make for the sequel.

Fortunately, Downey told Jon Stewart that he’d be renegotiating his contract, and even though he was joking, I’m going to take it as truth because I don’t want to be sad.

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