Kevin Feige said in an interview with DiscussingFilm that Hugh Jackman’s return as Wolverine in the new Marvel tentpole “Deadpool & Wolverine” proves that a door can certainly be opened for Robert Downey Jr. or Chris Evans to return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Iron Man or Captain America, respectively.
“That’s the key, right? How do you do it in a way that maintains what has come before, and in a great way? And we’ve been spending, you know, the last two-plus years figuring that out for Wolverine,” Feige said when asked about Downey and Evans coming back. “So, what’s to come? We’ll see. We’re just proud that we, I think, have figured it out for Wolverine. I think Hugh’s appearance and starring role in [‘Deadpool & Wolverine’] is a great sign that it can be done — if great care is taken.”
Downey and Evans both exited the franchise in 2019’s “Avengers: Endgame,” which notably featured the death of Downey’s Iron Man/Tony Stark. The Logan/Wolverine that Jackman played on screen in “X-Men” films dating back to 2000 died in 2017’s acclaimed “Logan,” and Jackman was never interested in returning as the character because it would risk meddling with the legacy of that film. The actor assured fans from the minute his Wolverine return was announced that it would not screw with the “Logan” timeline.
“It’s all because of this device they have in the Marvel world of moving around timelines,” Jackman told SiriusXM in December 2022. “Now we can go back because, you know, it’s science. So, I don’t have to screw with the ‘Logan’ timeline, which was important to me. And I think probably to the fans too.”
Jackman plays a different iteration of Wolverine than the one that made him a global superstar, so perhaps the same might be true for Downey and Iron Man/Tony Stark in the future? Feige stressed to Vanity Fair last December that, just like Jackman and “Logan,” he had no interest in messing with Downey’s exit in “Avengers: Endgame.”
“We are going to keep that moment and not touch that moment again,” Feige said at the time about Iron Man’s death. “We all worked very hard for many years to get to that, and we would never want to magically undo it in any way.”
However, Downey himself has been quite open this year about his interest in coming back to Marvel. Speaking to Esquire magazine after his Oscar win for “Oppenheimer,” the actor was asked if he would ever return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe now that he is officially an Academy Award winner. The actor didn’t hesitate to answer yes.
“Happily. It’s too integral a part of my DNA,” Downey said. “That role chose me. And look, I always say, ‘Never, ever bet against Kevin Feige.’ It is a losing bet. He’s the house. He will always win.”
Downey’s “Avengers” director Anthony and Joe Russo are currently in talks to helm the next two “Avengers” movies for Marvel, but they’ve expressed in confusion in the past about how their former star might return given they killed off Iron Man in “Endgame.”
“I don’t know how they would do it,” Anthony said. “I don’t know what the road to that would be.”
Joe added, “I mean we closed that book so it would be up to them to figure out how to reopen it.”
The Marvel Cinematic Universe next continues with “Deadpool & Wolverine,” in theaters July 26.
