The Marvel Cinematic Universe wouldn't be what it is without Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man. If that first film had failed, who knows what the state of comic-book films would be at this point. I can't imagine that we would have gotten to see GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY, DOCTOR STRANGE, ANT-MAN, or any of the other MCU movies which cropped up in the wake of those initial films. As we know, AVENGERS: ENDGAME brought an end to the actor's long tenure as Tony Stark/Iron Man, but most in this business are wise enough to know never say never.
While speaking with Joe Rogan on his podcast, Robert Downey Jr. was asked yet again about a possible return to Iron Man somewhere down the road, with Rogan even laying out a possible scenario where Marvel has gone through a "few semi-lackluster AVENGERS sequels without you," before the Avengers realize they need a super-genius and restart the time-machine, leading to Tony Stark stepping out to save the day. At first, Downey Jr. expressed his belief that audiences would feel a little cheated if he returned following his character's death in AVENGERS: ENDGAME, but he did leave the door open, just a crack.
To me, starting up again is off the table. I feel like I’ve done all I could with that character. There would have to be a super compelling argument and a series of events that made it obvious. But the other thing is, I wanna do other stuff.
At the end of the day, this is the realm of comic-books, and we know all too well that nothing and nobody ever stays dead. Does this mean Robert Downey Jr. will return as Iron Man at some point in the future, who knows, but Downey Jr. doesn't need to return. He's more than proven himself and devoted more than a decade of his life to this character. If anyone deserves to hang up the armour, it's him.
Would you like to see Robert Downey Jr. return as Iron Man at some point, or would it spoil his sendoff in AVENGERS: ENDGAME?