In a great desire to see Robert Downey, Jr. don the iron suit in a solo movie once again, fans scrutinize everything that the actor says and try to interpret these as confirmation that he would do a fourth "Iron Man" film. The 49-year old actor, to his credit, has done a great job at keeping fans at the edge of their seats.
The latest excitement came from his interview on Tuesday in "The Ellen Degeneres Show" to promote his movie, "The Judge."
When pressed by the Degeneres regarding a possible fourth "Iron Man" film, he was quoted by Coming Soon as saying, "I know there's going to be a bunch more Marvel movies. And they have big ideas of how to do it best and we're in the middle of negotiation..."
When Degeneres asked, "So, yes?", RDJ replied, "Okay, yes!"
However, in "The Late Show," he told David Letterman that there are no plans for "Iron Man 4." He said, "There is no script for Iron Man 4, but they do have a plan and I think they're going to announce it [soon]."
He further said that for him, there is no possibility of a fourth installment to the "Iron Man" franchise, but he confirmed that he's still involved with Marvel, saying, "I'm still going to be involved with Marvel and there's going to be plenty of fun stuff to happen."
Earlier, in an interview with Deadline's Mike Fleming, Jr., fans got all worked up because of a remark RDJ made about his friend, Mel Gibson. When taken in context, RDJ was simply making an off-handed remark about doing "Iron Man 4" if Gibson would direct – something like delivering a joke with a straight face – but it spread like wildfire and taken as though it's a condition that the actor had set before he agrees to play the role.
He clarified this in an online interview in Reddit, saying, "It was an offhanded remark to a journalist and friend. I have other projects in mind for Mel and I - sooner than later the Marvel Roster will be made public and all questions will be answered."
In many of his interviews, when asked about "Iron Man 4," RDJ often repeats his answer that it's under discussion. But he also has many other things in his mind. In the same Deadline interview, RDJ shared his thoughts about his future as the superhero in the iron suit.
"Well, hearing the cracking of my own bones on Iron Man 3, I finally came out of what can only be described as a five year flight of fancy..." he said. He was referring to the kind of thinking that, if Tony Stark or Sherlock Holmes could do this or that, so could he.
"Looking back, I'm surprised and really embarrassed that some middle aged guy was thinking like that. And I honestly don't think like that presently."
Of course, fans can still expect the actor to be in "Avengers: Age of Ultron" as well as in "Avengers 3," but it's likely that that's as far as it goes – unless something changes.
Other than admitting that he feels a bit too old for the role, it seems that the actor had started to mellow down, especially since his wife is expecting their second child this November, the sister to his two-year old son.
He said, "But I'm not 42, I'm turning 50 and now I'll have two small kids instead of one grown one, and eight Team Downey projects... It all has become this thing that has to be figured out. It has come to a head, right now, where the points of departure will be."
Team Downey is RDJ and his wife Susan's entertainment company. The outfit's first movie venture, under Warner Bros., is "The Judge," a comedy-drama starring RDJ and Robert Duvall.
In the movie, Downey plays successful lawyer Hank Palmer who goes back to his hometown to attend his mother's funeral, but he ends up having to defend his father, Judge Joe Palmer (Robert Duvall), in court when the latter is suspected of murder.
The movie also stars Billy Bob Thornton, Vincent D'Onofrio, Dax Shepard, Jeremy Strong, and Sarah Lancaster.
"The Judge" was shown at the Toronto International Film Festival last September, and is set to roll out in theaters on Oct. 10. "Avengers: Age of Ultron," on the other hand, is scheduled to be released on May 1, 2015.
And whether or not there will be an "Iron Man 4" film remains to be seen.
