Robert Downey Jr.

First, the good news: Robert Downey, Jr. has agreed to star in 'Iron Man 4' for Marvel! Considering everything he has been saying over the past year or so - essentially that he can't imagine an 'Iron Man 4' ever happening - that's a major step in the right direction and a huge win for Marvel Studios. But...Downey's agreement has come with one rather large condition. That his old friend, and current member of the Hollywood blacklist, Mel Gibson be allowed to direct.

As the unofficial mascot of the Marvel cinematic universe (he's pretty much Mickey Mouse to this corner of the Disney empire), Downey Jr.'s words and opinions feel like they carry a lot of weight. So when he chimes in with a comment that's essentially "Yeah, there really should be a female-led superhero movie, huh?", we can't help but feel slightly vindicated for wondering where the heck a 'Black Widow' or even a 'Captain Marvel' movie is.

Marvel Studios and the character of Tony Stark/Iron Man transformed Robert Downey Jr. from a has-been into one of the biggest movie stars on the planet, so it's not surprising that he'll sing their praises outside the context of the movies he stars in. However, he recently took it a big step further, declaring 'Guardians of the Galaxy' to be the best Marvel movie yet. Yep, even the ones that he's not in.

It's inevitable: one day there will be an 'Avengers' reboot. It's hard to think of now, as 'Avengers 2' hasn't even hit theaters and Phase 3 of Marvel's Cinematic Universe hasn't even begun yet. But, once Robert Downey, Jr., Scarlett Johansson, Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Evans and Jeremy Renner all play through their contracts, Marvel is going to have to start over. Now, we don't think Marvel would ever reboot 'The Avengers' as a 70s detective TV series, but if they did? It'd look a lot like this...

During Marvel Studio's big presentation at Comic-Con 2014, nearly the entire 'Avengers 2' cast came out on the Hall H stage to tease their next big battle and screen the first footage for the fans. But what the audience didn't see was all the post-action. The stars came out to chat with press about all things Ultron, Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver, the post-'Winter Soldier' S.H.I.E.L.D., and what each character is up to in this brave new world.

We've known for a little while that Marvel is taking a break from 'Iron Man' after three films with star Robert Downey Jr. And while they will likely make another 'Iron Man' in the future, it hasn't been clear if Downey Jr. would don the suit again. In a new interview, the actor and star of 'Avengers: Age of Ultron' hints that he's not quite ready to give it up.

On the heels of the reveal of the exclusive concept art poster for 'Ant-Man,' Marvel Studios has also unleashed two concept art posters for 'Avengers: Age of Ultron' at Comic-Con 2014, featuring our heroes battling a whole bunch of nasty robots.

We've grown used to seeing Robert Downey Jr. in the Iron Man suit over the past couple years, and it's been a while since he's done any serious dramatic acting, so can the once and future Tony Stark win an Oscar? Perhaps he'll finally get the golden statue for 'The Judge,' as it seems he's chasing one going by the film's first trailer.

Robert Downey Jr. may be relatively new to Twitter, but he's taken to it like a duck to water as he's made fans happy by tweeting a photo from the set of 'The Avengers 2.' Downey has a penchant for charming self promotion that would put even Tony Stark to shame.

Robert Downey Jr. and Mel Gibson first worked together twenty-four years ago in the 1990 film 'Air America' and have maintained a friendship ever since. Which may be why there's a rumor that Downey Jr. is trying to pull strings and get both Gibson and Jodie Foster into the Marvel universe, and possibly into 'The Avengers: Age of Ultron.'

Eighteen-month old 'Iron Man' fan Jaxson Denno's world was shattered when, much to his dismay, he discovered that Iron Man himself, Robert Downey Jr., does not wear the Iron Man suit 24/7.

Robert Downey Jr.'s contract with Marvel is up, which may make things a little difficult for Joss Whedon when it comes time to film 'The Avengers 2.' And Whedon says he just won't do it without his 'Iron Man.'