Robert Downey Jr was actually considered for another superhero role before landing his Iron Man gig.

Speaking this week, director Jon Favreau revealed who 58-year-old Robert was first in talks to play, and the MCU would have been unrecognisable.

Before playing Tony Stark, Jon, 56, said Robert had met with Marvel about a Fantastic Four role.

Speaking at an event that marked Iron Man’s 15th anniversary, Jon explained how 2008’s Iron Man came to be.

The blockbuster famously kicked off the MCU’s first phase.

Jon was chatting to Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige when he touched upon the fact Robert had met with the studio to discuss playing Doctor Doom in 2005’s Fantastic Four.

2008’s Iron Man kicked off the MCU’s first phase (Picture: Marvel/Disney/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock)Speaking this week, director Jon Favreau revealed who 58-year-old Robert was first in talks to play (Picture: Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock)

‘I remember you had all met with him already for like Doctor Doom or something on another project,’ Jon said.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, The Mandalorian creator went on: ‘I think he had come through on like maybe Fantastic Four, so everybody sort of knew who he was.’

However, when Robert was later brought in to screen test for Iron Man, they immediately saw ‘that spark’ in him.

When Robert was later brought in to screen test for Iron Man, they immediately saw ‘that spark’ in him (Picture: Getty)

‘And then one by one, people were just signing on board because now it became something interesting.’

As for Robert’s upcoming projects, it was recently revealed that he and Steven Knight will collaborate on a remake of Alfred Hitchcock’s classic thriller Vertigo.

Originally released in 1958 and based on the 1954 novel D’entre les morts (From Among the Dead) by Boileau-Narcejac, the psychological thriller follows police detective John ‘Scottie’ Ferguson, who has retired because an incident in the line of duty has caused him to develop an extreme feat of heights and vertigo.