Who played the first Iron Man?
Robert Downey Jr. played Iron Man, Tony Stark, in the 2008 film Iron Man, the first movie of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He played the role in ten films until 2019.
Director Jon Favreau pushed to cast Downey, who was considered a risky choice at the time. The film was a hit and launched the Marvel Cinematic Universe, a series of connected movies and shows.
Downey played Tony Stark in Iron Man 1, 2 and 3, the Avengers films and other Marvel movies. His final appearance as Iron Man was in Avengers: Endgame in 2019, where Tony Stark sacrifices himself to save the universe.
A new role
In 2024, Marvel announced that Downey would return to the franchise in a different role, playing the villain Doctor Doom in Avengers: Doomsday, scheduled for release in December 2026.
Before the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Iron Man appeared mostly in comics and animated series. The 2008 film's success made him one of Marvel's best-known heroes and led to more than 30 connected films.
Did You Know?
Iron Man first appeared in Marvel comics in 1963, created by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber, Don Heck and Jack Kirby.