The Marvel Cinematic Universe wouldn’t be really near what it is today if it wasn’t for Robert Downey Jr, who started it all in his role as Iron Man. This franchise has now grown big enough to push out many movies and series a year, but many fans will be shocked to hear this upcoming news. There were some Marvel films released before that didn’t do too well, so when Iron Man released in 2008, no one knew what was about to happen in such a huge franchise. The studios didn’t have their expectations high going into it, which is shocking considering just how big it all became.
Iron Man Could Have Been Written Off
In a recent interview, it was talked about by Jeff Bridges during the time Robert Downey Jr. was promoting his documentary film called Sr., that he described what it was like making the first Marvel Cinematic Universe movie:
“Well, I mean, first of all, because not too many people were thinking that was even going to have an opening weekend or do much of anything, so we were a little bit left alone. I find out more every day about how that thing was financed, it was basically ready to be written off if it tanked. And so anyway, it was the perfect thing where there were not a lot of creatively aggressive eyes on us. And by the time they gave it to us, it was like united artists, like the lunatics took over the asylum. And I remember Jeff Bridges, too, he was like, ‘Man, we’re doing a $200 million independent movie, man.’ And there was just that sense that, of course, it was much more organized.”
Jeff Bridges then also went on to say, “It drove me absolutely crazy until I made a slight adjustment in my brain. And that adjustment was, ‘Jeff, just relax. You’re making a $200-million student film. Just relax and have fun.’ And that kind of did the trick because here I get to play with these two incredible artists and just jam, and that’s what we ended up doing.”
And finally, he added, “For my money, that’s the best Marvel movie … I know I’m biased, of course. But man, I thought it was a wonderful experience.”
It is quite something to think about Iron Man being turned down and basically written off if it hadn’t gone well; luckily, we can rest assured that we live in a world where the Marvel Cinematic Universe does exist, and Robert Downey Jr. did an amazing job as Tony Stark.
