Avengers: Endgame is set to serve as the culmination point for the first eleven years of the MCU, and seeing how Iron Man was the superhero who started this whole saga, Marvel’s Phase 3 finale seems like as good a place as any for Tony Stark to end his run.
Between reports of Robert Downey Jr.’s contract expiring and his onscreen partner Pepper Potts dropping out of the franchise, it feels like each new development has only made the character’s impending exit seem all the more likely, and sure enough, according to a source close to We Got This Covered, the Avengers: Infinity War sequel will indeed by Downey’s final MCU film.
How exactly Iron Man will be bowing out of the saga – be it a heroic death, a quiet retirement or something else entirely – remains unclear, but if what we’re told is true, then fans may want to prepare themselves for an emotional sendoff.
Of course, many would argue that the writing has long been on the wall for Tony’s departure. Marvel Studios has made it all too clear that the MCU is about to see a changing of the guard, and with the possible exception of Captain America, Iron Man has consistently been the Phase 1 hero most commonly predicted to exit with Endgame.
As for how he might be put out of action, an act of self-sacrifice certainly seems in character, but surely there are ways of getting Tony to hang up the suits without killing him off. For example, going by Gwyneth Paltrow’s comments in an interview last year, Tony and Pepper may soon have a family to raise. But speculation aside, all will be revealed when Avengers: Endgame hits theaters on April 26th, 2019.