Marvel Studios considered many actors for the lead role in 2008's Iron Man. They ultimately chose Robert Downey Jr., an actor considered a risk at the time due to his troubled past; however, the studio understood that was behind him and cast the perfect Tony Stark.
Superhero movies didn't have the best track record in the mid-2000s, though 2008 was something of a turning point between Iron Man and The Dark Knight.
Talking to The Hollywood Reporter, Downey credited Toby Maguire and Sam Raimi's Spider-Man movies with convincing him it was the right time to suit up.
"In real-time, I saw how difficult they were, how rewarding they could be, and how popular [comic book films] were becoming," he said of spending time with Maguire while he was playing the iconic Marvel Comics superhero.
"I had been clean long enough...hungry even longer and I could feel [the] obsession coming back with manifesting the best version of myself. I had strangely been furiously strength training six times a week before I even knew [this role] was coming," Downey added, "and my shrink had told me 'Just start acting like something great is gonna happen and get ready for it'"
With the actor now set to return to the MCU (as the villainous Doctor Doom), it's entirely possible he and Maguire could share the screen. The Multiverse all but guarantees it and we're sure it's a meeting Downey would be fully on board with given his history with the Spider-Man: No Way Home star.
Here's what the actor recently said about playing Victor Von Doom in the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars:
"Susan and I were sitting down with Feige at one point and he said, 'It just keeps occurring to me that if you were to come back...' and Susan was like, 'Wait, wait, come back as what?'"
"Then we both realised over time that it was another thing that just disproves any doubt anyone could ever have about that guy, a very sophisticated creative thinker, about how can we not go backwards, how can we not disappoint expectations, how we can continue to beat expectations?"
"And he brought up Victor Von Doom. I looked up this character and I was like, 'Wow.' Later, Kevin goes, 'Let’s get Victor Von Doom right. Let's get that right.'"
You can hear more from Downey on Doom by clicking here. As for Iron Man, we'd be shocked if he doesn't make another appearance before the Multiverse Saga ends as there are surely plenty of other Variants the MCU vet can play.