Robert Downey Jr. has reflected on his journey playing Iron Man, admitting he could relate to Tony Stark a lot by the time he played him. When we first meet the self-proclaimed “genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist” in 2008’s Iron Man, Tony enjoys a hedonistic and vaguely irresponsible lifestyle. It isn’t until he’s captured by the Ten Rings in Afghanistan, sees young Americans killed by the very weapons he created to protect them, and escapes by creating an armored suit (the Mark I), that the CEO of Stark Industries decides to turn over a new leaf, shutting down the weapons manufacturing division of his company and devoting his life to something greater than himself.

Tony goes on to utilize his arc reactor technology, invest in clean energy, become a founding member of the Avengers, and save the universe. Despite this altruism, Tony never loses the signature irreverence and “textbook narcissism” associated with his bad-boy persona. For example, the appeal of fame results in a short-lived secret identity as Tony publicly reveals himself to be Iron Man in the first film, launching the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This made the character infinitely accessible to Downey, bringing so much of his personality to Tony (and perhaps vice versa). Before playing his now-iconic character, Downey was famously arrested multiple times on drug-related charges, something that makes his comeback story as a figurehead of the MCU all the more symbolic.

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During a recent interview on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, Downey explains how he relates to his MCU character. Thanks to much of his misbehavior occurring in a pre-internet world, he explains it was his moral psychology (“which doesn’t count for much”) and desire to “do the right thing” that allowed him to come back after taking it on the chin. He goes on to compare his story to Tony’s:

“Whenever you get handed a true period of humiliation. I’ll speak to my own experience seeing it with other people; I give them cred for dusting themselves off. I hate to say it - it’s a very American thing to build up, break down, and come back. In its own weird way it is the hero's journey. By the way, I could relate to Tony Stark a lot by the time I played him. A guy who really needed to be handed a dose of ouch.”

Tony Stark's Mark I Armor in the First Iron Man Movie

Tony’s MCU arc is almost entirely concerned with self-discovery, making it all the more relatable. His sacrificial snap at the end of Avengers: Endgame contrasts with Steve Rogers AKA Captain America’s seemingly selfish decision to disrupt the space-time continuum and finally dance with Peggy Carter. While a paragon of selflessness decides to do something for himself, a once self-obsessed character devotes himself to the greater good. Chris Evans is reportedly set to return as Captain America in the MCU but Downey seems more than satisfied with Tony’s sendoff. His legacy continues to loom large over Phase 4 with the upcoming Armor Wars series on Disney+ starring Don Cheadle as James Rhodes, aka War Machine, and will continue to influence Tom Holland’s Spider-Man. Even if the upcoming Black Widow contains an Iron Man cameo (via unused footage), Downey has remained adamant that his time playing Tony is at an end. The actor, now 55, has played the character in 10 of the MCU’s 23 films (so far).

Tony’s death is certainly the end of an era for the MCU. The character helped to make his cinematic universe a pop culture phenomenon the likes of which no one has ever seen. On top of that, art imitated life when Downey was cast in the role, embodying the character much like Harrison Ford does Indiana Jones or Hugh Jackman does Wolverine. Fans will probably be mourning Iron Man’s loss for quite some time because whenever they see Robert Downey Jr., they see Tony Stark. Indeed, comic book characters rarely stay dead. That said, even if Downey never plays Tony again, he’ll always be Iron Man.

More: How Age of Ultron Set Up Iron Man's Endgame Sacrifice

Source: The Late Show With Stephen Colbert

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