Jon Favreau has finally admitted that he made a mistake in warning Joe and Anthony Russo not to kill Tony Stark/Iron Man in 2019’s Avengers: Endgame. Director Favreau created the Marvel Cinematic Universe by casting Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man in the 2008 film of the same name. The two reunited for 2010’s Iron Man 2, and Favreau went on to co-star with Downey in other Marvel films, playing Tony’s assistant and driver Happy Hogan.
“I called the Russos and they were like, ‘I don’t know, I don’t know if people are going to like it, I don’t know!’ I think this is going to have a big impact on people because there were kids who grew up with that character,” Favreau recalled on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” On opposing Iron Man’s “Endgame” death.
“But I have to say, they handled it very well,” he added. “And Gwyneth (Paltrow) and Robert (Downey Jr.) gave such great performances, and I think that made it emotional. I think they did a great job. I was wrong. I was wrong. I was choked up! Even though it’s a movie, those characters have been a part of my life for a long time.”
The Russos initially revealed in a video interview with Vanity Fair that Favreau was adamantly opposed to the decision to kill Iron Man, with Joe Russo saying, “I remember Favreau walking around the corner of the stage trying to reason with him from the ledge, because he was like, ‘We can’t do that. It’s going to devastate people, and we don’t want them to come out of the theater and get stuck in traffic.'” We did it anyway. ”
Downey returned to Marvel, but not as Iron Man. He will play the villainous Doctor Doom in Avengers: Doomsday, which will be released in December this year, and Favreau said he was “excited” to see it. The filmmaker lobbied for Downey’s casting as Iron Man at a time when Downey’s personal struggles were making him an outcast in Hollywood.
“He was great for Tony Stark,” Favreau said. “As soon as we cast him, everything else was a no-brainer. There had been a lot of Marvel movies before that…other Spider-Man movies, X-Men, etc. Nobody knew who Iron Man was. When Robert played that role, I knew that by casting such a great actor in a role like that, something bigger was coming.
Watch Favreau’s full interview on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” In the video below.
