Throughout the multiverse of countless possibilities that future Marvel Cinematic Universe projects could explore, a story where Iron Man reaches old age in the vein of Old Man Logan or Old Man Hawkeye would never work. Since the death of Tony Stark in Avengers: Endgame, much speculation has brewed as to how and when Iron Man might appear onscreen again. However, the next person audiences see don the Iron Man armored suit will have to be a different face than the Tony Stark they've watched grow older over the years.

Since effectively launching the MCU in 2008's Iron Man, Tony Stark's journey has been one of steadily shedding his trademark colossal ego and selfishness. Before first assembling the suit, he was hardly more than an arms dealer that saw no further than himself. After years spent gearing his technology to the world's benefit over his own, the climax of 2012's The Avengers saw him at last learn the meaning of selfless heroism, riding a missile through a wormhole and nearly giving his life to destroy Loki's forces attacking New York City. From there, the films leading to Endgame patiently built Tony Stark into a hero who didn't just risk self-sacrifice, but who could actually knowingly die for others.

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While death hasn't stopped MCU characters from returning, seeing Robert Downey Jr. return to the role as an older, perhaps wiser Iron Man would only diminish the meaning of what the character needed so long to learn. From the comically inflated narcissist that Tony Stark started out as, his journey was always a one-way path to a fixed end of choosing true selflessness. If a future MCU storyline brought this same incarnation of Tony Stark back, that would inherently mean he had not made the ultimate sacrifice that defined his arc as a character.

Why Tony Stark Was Always Meant To Die Young

Furthermore, Tony Stark's signature egotistical recklessness only further cements the incongruity of his living to old age. It's important to remember that this is the same man who impulsively revealed his secret identity on a world stage, deliberately taunted enemies with his home address, and (in his own words describing the since-deceased Loki) had a "monument built to the sky with his name plastered" on it. Tony Stark's long-term survival would not only cheapen the morality of his choices, but also the sheer impact of the brashness that always set him apart. His entire driving motivation throughout his time in the MCU was to protect others. Even more than Captain America, if anyone was going to sacrifice themselves for the greater good, it was always going to be Iron Man.

With the critical and commercial success of Marvel character films like Logan that explore more aged interpretations of beloved characters, it's understandable why a storyline about an older Tony Stark might scratch an itch for fans. On the other hand, this can instead pose a fruitful opportunity for an already-esteemed hero to pass the torch, opening up an interesting path for a new character to helm the Iron Man armor. After all, in Tony's own words, "If you're nothing without the suit then you shouldn't have it," and there's never a shortage of candidates within the MCU who've proved more than worthy of the challenge.