Anyone that’s ever seen a movie where Shane Black is credited knows that the writer and director is a huge fan of Christmas, dating back to his very first script. Lethal Weapon is held up alongside Die Hard and Batman Returns as an alternative festive favorite, although he abandoned the majority of the holiday iconography for his last effort The Predator.
The Last Boy Scout, The Long Kiss Goodnight, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and The Nice Guys all feature references to the most wonderful time of year, though, so much so that people would be shocked if Shane Black lent his name to anything that didn’t feature at least one Christmas element. So when he signed on to direct the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Iron Man 3, it was a given that Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark would indulge in some holiday shenanigans.
Of course, the threequel isn’t a standard Christmas movie by the definition of the genre, as the festivities aren’t integral to the plot, but Tony does blow up all of his armored suits as a gift for Pepper Potts, while there’s also the hilariously oversized teddy bear he buys her as an apology. And now that the big day is upon us, fans have been celebrating the final installment in RDJ’s solo trilogy, as you can see below.
https://twitter.com/rogersromanova/status/1341951581231595520?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1341951581231595520%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fcomicbook.com%2Fmarvel%2Fnews%2Firon-man-3-christmas-movie-trending%2F
https://twitter.com/starkrescue/status/1342138439886536704?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1342138439886536704%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fcomicbook.com%2Fmarvel%2Fnews%2Firon-man-3-christmas-movie-trending%2F
annual reminder that iron man 3 is the best christmas movie pic.twitter.com/by0a9dinK3
— ✨ (@civiIswar) December 24, 2020
https://twitter.com/Mark_Medina/status/1342184218269425664?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1342184218269425664%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fcomicbook.com%2Fmarvel%2Fnews%2Firon-man-3-christmas-movie-trending%2F
https://twitter.com/johneberlejr/status/1342203366332485632?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1342203366332485632%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fcomicbook.com%2Fmarvel%2Fnews%2Firon-man-3-christmas-movie-trending%2F
https://twitter.com/vacantless/status/1342184465322356743?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1342184465322356743%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fcomicbook.com%2Fmarvel%2Fnews%2Firon-man-3-christmas-movie-trending%2F
EVERYONE STAY CALM!!! IRON MAN 3 IS TRENDING pic.twitter.com/Ja2Snx2FrF
— Lunwi (@Lunwi88) December 24, 2020
Iron Man 3 is a Christmas movie https://t.co/oiffrDovVq
— BD (@BrandonDavisBD) December 24, 2020
The opening chapter of Phase Two has proved to be pretty divisive among fans of the world’s biggest franchise, with many celebrating it as one of the most underrated installments in the mythology, while others criticize both the Mandarin twist and the movie itself as a major disappointment hardly befitting the last solo outing for the MCU’s most popular name and marquee character. But despite all that, it seems that a lot of folks have no problem throwing it on every Christmas for a rewatch.