Twenty-two days before the release of Robert Downey Jr.’s presumed MCU swan song, the Hollywood A-lister celebrates 54 years on this planet.
While the actor is best known these days as one of the main players the Marvel saga, Downey’s career extends far beyond a single franchise. After making his acting debut at the age of five in the 1970 film Pound, directed by Robert Downey Sr., the star went on to deliver Oscar-nominated turns in 1993’s Chaplin and 2009’s Tropic Thunder. Downey has also worked with such renowned directors as David Fincher (Zodiac), Robert Altman (Short Cuts) and Oliver Stone (Natural Born Killers), as well as serving as the star of the Sherlock Holmes series.
That being said, Downey’s filmography has been dominated in recent years by his contributions to the MCU. Since helping to kick off the cinematic universe with 2008’s Iron Man, the actor has reprised the role of Tony Stark for eight more films – namely, the two Iron Man sequels, the three Avengers films, Spider-Man: Homecoming, Captain America: Civil War and lest we forget, The Incredible Hulk, where he made an uncredited cameo.
Very soon, Robert Downey Jr. will be bringing his MCU total up to an even ten with the release of Avengers: Endgame, which is widely predicted to be his final film in the franchise. For the past year, fans have been fervently speculating on the likelihood of Iron Man living to see the end of Marvel’s Phase 3 finale, but all will be revealed when the film hits theaters on April 26th.
After that, the actor will finally be getting back to his other major franchise with Sherlock Homes 3, which is set for release on December 22nd, 2021.
