Robert Downey Jr. recently opened up about how Tobey Maguire's portrayal of Spider-Man inspired him to play Iron Man in the MCU.
The Oscar winner is considered one of the MCU's main architects as his iconic portrayal of Tony Stark in the first Iron Man movie is credited to be one of the reasons for the franchise's immediate success.
After playing Tony Stark for the last time in Avengers: Endgame, Downey is set to return to the MCU as Doctor Doom in the upcoming Avengers movies. The announcement of his comeback was met with mixed reactions from fans.
Robert Downey Jr. Shares Tobey Maguire Inspired His Iron Man Involvement in the MCU
In a recent interview, Downey shared how he decided to play Iron Man in the MCU during the franchise's inception and, as it turns out, Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man inspired him to take on the role.
"In real-time, I saw how difficult they were, how rewarding they could be, and how popular [comic book films] were becoming," he said.
"I had been clean long enough... hungry even longer and I could feel [the] obsession coming back with manifesting the best version of myself."
The Oscar winner continued, "I had strangely been furiously strength training six times a week before I even knew [this role] was coming, and my shrink had told me 'Just start acting like something great is gonna happen and get ready for it.'"
It is a great anecdote from Downey as it showed how influential Maguire's Spider-Man was during the pre-MCU days and his success led to the Oscar winner's now-iconic tenure as the beloved hero.
With Avengers: Secret Wars coming, there is a possibility that Downey and Maguire can finally share the screen if the latter will return as Spider-Man and team up with other Marvel heroes against Doctor Doom.
Avengers: Doomsday is slated for release in theaters on May 1, 2026, while Avengers: Secret Wars is scheduled for release on May 7, 2027.
What do you think of Downey's remarks? Let us know in the comments!
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