There have been no confirmations yet that Marvel Studios is indeed moving forward with "Iron Man 4," and back in April Marvel Studios executive Kevin Feige stated that only "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" was planned for Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, actor Robert Downey Jr. has confirmed he would be willing to return to reprise his role as Tony Stark aka Iron Man.
"I feel like I could do one more," stated Downey Jr. in a special feature video on ABC's "Nightline." The video was promoting "Captain America: Civil War," which launched in theaters in May and also stars Downey Jr. alongside Chris Evans as Steve Rogers aka Captain America.
However, it is important to note that just because Downey Jr. has confirmed he is open to playing the character again it doesn't mean the film has been green-lit or that the studios won't replace him with a younger actor.
According to previous reports, there have been rumors that Marvel Studios may soon replace Downey Jr. with Ty Simpkins, the young boy in "Iron Man 3." If Simpkins' character dons the Iron Man suit then Downey Jr. would simply return to play as his mentor.
These new statements, however, contradict these rumors, and if the studios move ahead with a fourth film in the series then it may be that Downey Jr. will continue to play the titular hero despite his age and the level of exhaustion that comes with playing an active role in an action film.
Fans speculate that a fourth film is going to happen simply because the "Iron Man" films make so much money for Marvel Studios. The third film alone broke over $1 billion dollars, an achievement only attained by the "Avengers" movies and "Captain America: Civil War."
Downey Jr. will be reprising his role for the upcoming "Avengers: Infinity War" films, which will be released in 2018 and 2019.
