4. Iron Man, 2008.
Directed by Jon Favreau.
Starring Robert Downey Jr.(Tony Stark/Iron Man), Gwyneth Paltrow (Pepper Potts), Jeff Bridges (Obadiah Stane/Iron Monger), Terrence Howard (James ‘Rhodey’ Rhodes), Clark Gregg (Agent Phil Coulson), John Favreau (Hogan) and Paul Bettany (J.A.R.V.I.S.).
In at number four is the movie that started it all, as Marvel and Jon Favreau took a second-tier character in Iron Man, threw in some perfect casting in Robert Downey Jr as Tony Stark, and launched one of the most successful film franchises of all-time, as well as sending its leading man on his path to becoming the biggest star in Hollywood.
Released in May of 2008, Iron Man was a huge success with both fans and critics alike, earning $585 million at the global box office and casting aside any doubts about the viability of Marvel’s plan to fund and produce its own slate of movies. And, with a post-credits cameo from Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury, it took the first step into a wider, shared universe that rival studios are now falling over themselves to replicate.
Outside of Guardians of the Galaxy and The Avengers, this was the only other film to rank in first place on any of our writers’ individual lists (which you can check out at the end of this article).
Read our review of Iron Man here.
Originally published August 13, 2014. Updated April 12, 2018.
