Twenty years ago, Robert Downey Jr. landed the role of Tony Stark in Iron Man, and it’s almost impossible to imagine the Marvel Cinematic Universe without him.
Now, one of Downey Jr.’s final audition screen tests has resurfaced alongside the original 2006 casting report, and Marvel fans are discovering the footage all over again, some for the first time!
It’s pretty wild watching this all these years later because the Tony Stark audiences would eventually come to know is already right there.
A fan shared a report dated September 29, 2006, looking back at the announcement that Downey Jr. would play Stark. At the time, the decision wasn’t greeted with universal excitement. Some fans questioned his age, his history in Hollywood, and whether he was really the guy Marvel should build Iron Man around.
Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige knew people were going to have opinions. Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter at the time, he addressed the inevitable reaction:
“In every casting announcement we’ve done, people in their mind’s eye have their own view of it and let us know about it. We’re used to it. The point is we looked at everybody and we found the best person for the role. It’s as confident a casting move as we’ve ever done. The proof will be in the pudding, but he is Tony Stark.”
Turns out Feige knew exactly what Marvel had. The resurfaced screen test makes it easy to see why Downey Jr. got the job.
One portion has him playing Stark as outrageously arrogant while talking with a female journalist, giving the character the confidence, humor, and attitude that would eventually become such a huge part of the performance.
Downey Jr. also improvises during the audition and gets laughs from the executives watching him. Another portion moves into much heavier territory with Rhodey, showing that he could switch from Stark’s sarcastic personality to something far more intense when the scene called for it.
A lot of what made Downey Jr.’s version of the character work was already taking shape during the audition.
Fans revisiting the footage two decades later have been having similar reactions, saying: “What a pivotal moment for the MCU, it’s hard to imagine anyone else as Tony Stark now.”
Another added: “Crazy to think this was the moment that set the whole MCU in motion. RDJ as Tony Stark ended up becoming one of the most defining casting choices in superhero movie history.”
It’s hard to argue with the impact. Iron Man arrived in 2008 and became the starting point for what grew into the MCU, while Downey Jr. continued playing Stark across the franchise for more than a decade.
His run eventually reached its emotional conclusion in Avengers: Endgame, where Tony sacrificed himself to defeat Thanos.
Of course, Downey Jr.’s Marvel story isn’t finished. He’s returning to the MCU as Doctor Doom in Avengers: Doomsday, another casting decision that immediately sparked mixed reactions from fans.
There’s something strangely fitting about that. Twenty years after people questioned whether Robert Downey Jr. was the right choice for Tony Stark, Marvel is once again asking audiences to trust one of its biggest casting swings.
We already know how the first one turned out. Watching this old Iron Man screen test now makes the whole thing even more fun.
Now we get to see if he can pull off another Marvel transformation when Doctor Doom arrives in Avengers: Doomsday.
