One of the most exciting parts of Marvel’s Phase 3 was the announcement of the “Civil War” story line from the comics, an incredibly dramatic arc that pitted beloved heroes against each other and echoes of today’s dialogue about civil liberties. It had always been a hope of Marvel fans to see this story brought to the big screen, but it almost didn’t happen. Tony Stark himself, Robert Downey, Jr., had only signed up to work through Avengers: Age of Ultron — until he changed his mind and agreed to be a part of Captain America‘s second sequel.
Downey spoke with Empire magazine and revealed that unless Marvel could include Tony Stark/Iron Man in Captain America 3 — which originally had the subtitle “Serpent Society” — none of the “Civil War” story could happen:
“They said to me, ‘If we have you, we can do this, or Cap 3 has to be something else. It’s nice to feel needed. And at this point it’s about helping each other, too. I look at it as a competition and I go, ‘Wow, maybe if these two franchises teamed up and I can take even a lesser position, with people I like and directors I respect, maybe we can keep things bumping along.”
This also explains why Downey was more keen on doing a Captain America movie rather than another Iron Man movie — less of a commitment. Downey is basically over playing a superhero, but he’s still an actor and knows that if there is a good story to be told, like “Civil War,” then he’ll be on board. However, this makes things seem pretty certain that Iron Man won’t be a part of either of the Avengers: Infinity War movies, which could be the curtain call for Steve Rogers, if we’re going by Chris Evans’ contract. Given the events that go down in “Civil War,” that would make sense (and that’s all I’ll say about that).
We already know that Steve and Tony have had their differences, but at present, they are most certainly playing for the same team. Downey points out, however, that changing one’s mind is not unheard of, and we’ll be seeing some of that in Avengers: Age of Ultron:
“…[W]hat would it take for Tony to completely turn around everything he’s stood for? Joss [Whedon] brings this up all the time. It’s kind of weird that these guys would have all these throw downs all over planet Earth and yet when the movie’s over, nobody minds. What would the American government do if this were real? Wouldn’t it be interesting to see Tony doing something you wouldn’t imagine?”
Even more interesting is seeing Chris Evans as Steve Rogers going outside of his comfort zone and questioning everything he’s ever stood for, as we witnessed in Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and heading into even darker territory. Downey definitely wants to see that:
“…The biggest question is, for Chris and for Cap, how do we bring Cap to a place where people go, ‘Man, I never thought I would see such a vast change in Steve.’ After you see Snowpiercer, you’re like, ‘I want to see a little bit of that guy.’”
These crazy multi-picture Marvel contracts might seem like a drag for some actors, especially to someone like Robert Downey, Jr. who has been on so many redemption trips and hit the ultimate jackpot with his Iron Man franchise, positioning him to take any project he wants for the rest of his career. But at heart, he’s still a storyteller who cares about making good movies. And probably some extra loads of money, but still.
Source: Screen Rant
