Robert Downey Jr. to Join Captain America 3 and start Civil War
Robert Downey Jr. is in final negotiations to play Tony Stark/Iron Man in “Captain America 3.”
While RDJ being in “Captain America 3” may be great news, what follows the film is even greater news. With Robert Downey Jr. signing on to “Captain America 3” he’s also igniting the Civil War storyline which fans have been anxiously awaiting.
The actor is in final negotiations to play billionaire Tony Stark in the third installment, which is slated to begin production in the Spring for a May 6, 2016, release. Downey is already set to suit up as Iron Man for next year’s “The Avengers: Age of Ultron” and “The Avengers 3.”
The deal is significant for the Marvel cinematic universe considering the plot will pit Stark against Captain America’s alter-ego Steve Rogers, played by Chris Evans, as they feud over the Superhero Registration Act, which forces anyone with superhuman abilities to reveal their identities to the U.S. government and agree to act as a police force for the authorities.
For those of you that are unfamiliar with the Civil War storyline, let me tell you now…you’re in for a treat! This is arguably one of the best Marvel story arcs of this decade and a contender for one of the best story arcs of all time.
Civil War brings a real world scenario to the superhero universe by raising the question of, “Should superheroes be regulated and managed?” The government decides to intervene by creating a Superhero Registration Act and while Tony Stark supports the idea, Steve Rogers feels that it is a violation of citizens’ personal freedoms. This causes the first ever war between superheroes who have opposing views on the Superhero Registration Act.
The news of Civil War also reinforces the possibilities of a Spider-Man appearance based on the rumors of Sony talking with Marvel. Spider-Man had a very significant role in the Civil War storyline by being swayed by both sides. It also introduced a Spider-Man suit built by Tony Stark which led Spider-Man to be called “The Iron Spider.” I’m not sure about the legality of things but if they are similar to the Quicksilver/Scarlet Witch situation between Marvel and Fox then Marvel could possibly use the “Iron Spider” name without using “Spider-Man.” This would be quite a let down to not reference the character as Spider-Man but this may be the deal they are working out. Maybe Marvel is strong-arming Sony saying they’ll just use the character and not reference him as Spider-Man or they can jump on board and join the fun. Who knows?
Iron Spider aka Spider-Man in Civil War
If Marvel can pull this off then I would expect something greater than even the first “Avengers” film. This is a milestone in Marvel history and if this is properly executed, it could be the most interesting and controversial superhero film of all time
[Source: Variety]
Though I did click on this article because I was excited about the prospect of a time warp American Civil War Marvel arc, this summary does make it more likely I’ll see this.