You can’t keep a good Iron Man down.
Robert Downey Jr. has officially signed on to reprise his role as Tony Stark in a two-film agreement with Marvel for “The Avengers 2” and “The Avengers 3.”
While various recent reports indicate that the star is renegotiating his lucrative contract with Marvel in order to headline a possible “Iron Man 4,” he’ll definitely be appearing as the character in “The Avengers” sequels, it was announced on Marvel.com. Notably, a fourth “Iron Man” film is not part of the deal, so that film is still currently up in the air.
Downey will re-join his Marvel superhero pals Captain America (Chris Evans), Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and Thor (Chris Hemsworth) in the sequel, as long as their respective contracts are likewise sorted out.
“The Avengers 2” is scheduled to begin production in March. Joss Whedon is returning as writer-director, and although we don’t know much about the sequel’s plot, he has revealed that Loki (Tom Hiddleston) won’t be returning, and that the brother-sister duo of Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch will be joining the super-team.
Marvel also says they’ll be unveiling further additional casting updates and some new movie characters soon, so stay tuned, true believers.
“Iron Man 3” recently crossed the $400 million mark at the domestic box office, while 2012’s “The Avengers” is one of the highest-grossing films of all-time, behind only James Cameron’s “Avatar” and “Titanic.”
“The Avengers 2” is scheduled to hit theaters May 1, 2015