Marvel chief Kevin Feige shares Robert Downey Jr.’s was initially opposed by the execs for ‘Iron Man’ role
Robert Downey Jr. is one of the most prominent faces of the Marvel universe as Iron Man; however, initially, the franchise’s higher-ups had an issue with the actor’s casting due to his legal past troubles.
During an interview with Vanity Fair, the superhero’s franchise head honcho Kevin Feige shared, “It purely came down to the Marvel board being nervous at putting all of their chips in their future films on somebody who famously had those legal troubles in the past.”
He continued, “I wasn’t very good — and I’m still not great — at taking no for an answer. But I also don’t pound my chest to try to get my way.”
Adding, “I try to figure out ways to make it as clear to other people why we should head in a direction. And that’s when the idea of a screen test came up.”
Previously, Marvel’s founder David Maisel revealed he argued for the approval of the 58-year-old after opposition from other executives.
“My board thought I was crazy to put the future of the company in the hands of an addict. I helped them understand how great he was for the role. We all had confidence that he was clean and would stay clean,” the ex-head told The New Yorker.
