Iron Man’s (Robert Downey Jr.) journey may have come to a close in Avengers: Endgame, but a new Marvel leak suggests that we may not have seen the last of Tony Stark. The leak comes after a fan theory surfaced about how Tony’s mind has lived on in the form of artificial intelligence. If the theory is true, then it opens the door for more Iron Man cameos in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). Here’s a quick look at how Downey might return to the MCU in the near future.
Did Tony Stark survive ‘Avengers: Endgame’?
There is no doubt that Iron Man died in the final scenes of Endgame. While Tony’s actions ended thewar with Thanos (Josh Brolin) and brought back everyone who died in theoriginal snap, he was forced to sacrifice himself to make it happen.
The characters even held a heartbreaking funeral after Tony’sdeath, further driving home the fact that Iron Man’s story had come to afitting end.
But a new fan theory argues that Tony may live on in the form ofAI.
According to Express,the theory is based on the scene where Tony makes a hologram for his daughterthat was played during his funeral. While the hologram was clearly meant tocomfort Tony’s daughter, there may be more to it than meets the eye.
The fan theory says that the hologram was actually AI that wascreated by Tony prior to his death. If that is true, then we may see more ofIron Man in future films, albeit in the form of AI instead of a real person.
Marvel has not confirmed the theory, but a new leak may havegiven it some credibility.
Marvel leak may have confirmed Downey’s return
There is actually some evidence in the comics to back up the fantheory about Tony being AI. In the Ironheart storyline from the comics, Tony’sfemale counterpart is a black teenager named Riri Williams.
Williams takes over Tony Stark’s role after he finds himself in a coma. But when she puts on the Ironheart suit, she discovers that the AI inside the helmet is actually Tony.
There has been a lot of rumors about how Marvel is getting readyto introduce Ironheart in the MCU or on Disney’s new streaming service.
In fact, Downey reportedly told fans at a recent event that hefully supports Ironheart joining the MCU in the near future.
Nothing official has been confirmed, but bringing Ironheart intothe fold could be a great way to resurrect Downey’s character without bringinghim back from the dead. It would also be an opportunity to add even more diversityto the MCU, which is definitely a good thing.
When might Downey return to the MCU?
Assuming the fan theory is correct, it might be a long time before we see Downey as Tony Stark in action.
This past summer, Marvel announced a slew of projects for Phase 4 of the MCU. The studio plans to continue some of its most popular franchises while introducing some new characters to the universe.
The first film in the new phase is Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow, which is due out intheaters on May 1, 2020. Marvel is following that up with The Eternals, which is scheduled to premiere next November.
Other upcoming projects include Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Thor: Love and Thunder, BlackPanther 2, Captain Marvel 2, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
Marvel is also working on launching several new television shows that will premiere on Disney’s new streaming platform, Disney Plus. This includes the likes of Falcon and The Winter Soldier, Loki, WandaVision, Hawkeye, Ms. Marvel, and Moon Knight.
While we would love to see Downey reprise his iconic role, he isunlikely to do so in any of these projects. This means that if Downey everreturns as Tony Stark, it will likely be in Phase 5.
That said, it is great to know that there are ways Marvel couldbring Downey’s Iron Man back, even if we have to wait a little while until ithappens.
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