Avengers Infinity War: TOM CRUISE was almost Iron Man BEFORE Robert Downey Jr

The role needs someone handsome, charming, cocky and, some might say, arrogant.

In the last ten years Downey Jr didn’t just make the character his own, he established an entire box office-conquering franchise.

It’s almost impossible to think of anyone else playing Tony Stark and yet a far bigger star at the time was attached to the role.

Even when the superstar dropped out, the studio and director John Favreau were still not sure they wanted Downey Jr at all…

So who was this Hollywood hottie Top Gun who almost made it Mission Impossible for RDJ?

Before Marvel regained the rights to their characters and launched the epic MCU, New Line was moving ahead with a movie directed by Nick Cassavetes as director and Tom Cruise himself attached.

Part of the joy of Downey Jr’s now iconic portrayal is that it is sometimes difficult to see where Robert ends and Tony begins. That might not have been so easy with an established star like Tom Cruise, who was the biggest box office name in the world at the time.

When the project fell through and Favreau came on board for Marvel they decided that the character should be bigger than any famous star name, but he still remembers thinking of Downey Jr: “He didn’t fulfill any of the criteria I was presented.”

As rumours continue to swirl that Avengers Infinity War will be Downey Jr’s swan song and the end of Iron Man, a major new feature in Empire magazine recalls those early days.

Favreau said: “I’ve always loved his (Downey Jr’s) work… I said,’ This guy looks fantastic, hes enthusiastic and I really think he could be the guy.”

But the studio was still not convinced and Favreau admitted: “When it wasn’t going to work out, I literally could not sleep at night. And Robert said, ‘With your permission…I’d like to hold out hope here.’ He was relentless and patient and did everything he could and won the race. And now I look like a genius.””

Downey Jr’s infamous confidence carried him through and into the role.

He recalled: ” I’m not one to make calls before the game starts but I was pretty certain. It was in the air…

“At a (later) point we were sitting in the Stark private plane and someone was like, ‘What’s it like playing Tony Stark?’ And I thought, ‘What are they talking about? I am Tony Stark!'”

EMPIRE MAGAZINE IS OUT NOW

AVENGERS INFINITY WAR IS OUT ON APRIL 26