Robert Downey Jr praises the real geniuses behind the MCU

Robert Downey Jr might not be a member of the Marvel Cinematic Universe anymore, but it goes without saying that the actor is going to be quizzed about its films and his work as Iron Man for the foreseeable future.

That was exactly the case when Downey Jr made an appearance on the Joe Rogan show this week, during which time the Oscar-nominated star revealed that the real genius behind the MCU is the creative team that repeatedly get themselves into corners that they then creatively have to get out of.

“I just think that the real genius of the Marvel creative team, and the Russo Brothers who did the last few, Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.

“They go, ‘We love writing ourselves into a corner. We love it.’ Because, then, it activates all of those, ‘How do we get out of purgatory juices,’ and then you get the next right idea.”

While he is obviously right for giving the likes of Joe and Anthony Russo, as well as writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, the credit they so clearly deserve, it should also be noted that Downey played just as integral a part in the success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

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The casting of Downey as Iron Man ahead of its 2008 release immediately established the tone and humour that Marvel has repeated again and again over the course of the last 12 years.

It also helped Downey earn hundreds of millions of dollars and turned him into a bona-fide national treasure, too.

Both of which will come in handy over the next few weeks, as his first post Marvel film Dolittle has been savaged by critics, with the actor’s bizarre Welsh accent coming in for particular criticism.

It comes to UK cinemas on 7 February.