Robert Downey Jr almost played a totally different Marvel character

Robert Downey Jr was actually considered for another superhero role before landing his Iron Man gig.

Speaking this week, director Jon Favreau revealed who 58-year-old Robert was first in talks to play, and the MCU would have been unrecognisable.

Before playing Tony Stark, Jon, 56, said Robert had met with Marvel about a Fantastic Four role.

Speaking at an event that marked Iron Man’s 15^th anniversary, Jon explained how 2008’s Iron Man came to be.

The blockbuster famously kicked off the MCU’s first phase.

Jon was chatting to Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige when he touched upon the fact Robert had met with the studio to discuss playing Doctor Doom in 2005’s Fantastic Four.

‘I remember you had all met with him already for like Doctor Doom or something on another project,’ Jon said.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, The Mandalorian creator went on: ‘I think he had come through on like maybe Fantastic Four, so everybody sort of knew who he was.’

However, when Robert was later brought in to screen test for Iron Man, they immediately saw ‘that spark’ in him.

‘Once it was him, that’s when my life got a lot easier because he understood the voice of the character,’ Jon continued.

‘And then one by one, people were just signing on board because now it became something interesting.’

As for Robert’s upcoming projects, it was recently revealed that he and Steven Knight will collaborate on a remake of Alfred Hitchcock’s classic thriller Vertigo.

Originally released in 1958 and based on the 1954 novel D’entre les morts (From Among the Dead) by Boileau-Narcejac, the psychological thriller follows police detective John ‘Scottie’ Ferguson, who has retired because an incident in the line of duty has caused him to develop an extreme feat of heights and vertigo.

The detective, played by James Stewart, is hired by an acquaintance, Gavin Elster (Tom Helmore), as a private investigator to follow Gavin’s wife Madeleine (Kim Novak), who is behaving strangely.

According to reports, Paramount Pictures has pre-emptively acquired the rights to a remake of the classic film.

Got a story?

If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.

MORE : Simon Cowell’s brother reveals how he supported him through secret cancer battle

MORE : Abba Voyage one year on: Groundbreaking pop spectacle delivers serotonin boost like you wouldn’t believe