With Phase Three now well underway and the Marvel Cinematic Universe moving full steam ahead towards Avengers: Infinity War, questions are once again been raised about the future of the MCU, and what will happen when age catches it up with its stars, or they decide it’s time to move on.
During an interview with The Toronto Sun, Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige was asked how Marvel plans to address that very scenario, and whether they would go down the recasting route for the likes of Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man and Chris Evans’ Captain America, or if they’d model them on Michael Douglas’ Hank Pym from Ant-Man.
“I think it could be either one,” said Feige. “These characters have been around for 50-plus years, and have been relatively ageless. Sometimes there are alternate stories where the character is younger than they usually are, or older, but they usually maintain a certain age. I think most of these characters that are iconic, like James Bond, like Batman, like Spider-Man, like Iron Man, someday will be portrayed by different actors. The good news right now is I don’t have to think about that for a long time. We have storylines for this cast for many years to come.”
So, judging by Feige’s response, you’d have to assume Marvel plans on having these characters around for Phase Four, which means some rather expensive contract renewals could be on the horizon…
Originally published November 11, 2016. Updated November 30, 2022.
