Tony Stark Fans Campaign With LA Billboard To Bring RDJ Back To The MCU

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Marvel fans are campaigning to bring Tony Stark back to the Marvel Cinematic Universe with a billboard in Los Angeles. As the MCU's inaugural character, Tony Stark (and thereby Robert Downey Jr.) has been an integral part of Marvel's cinematic universe since its inception. Downey Jr. appeared as the iconic character in several installments over the past decade, with Iron Man's MCU arc culminating in Avengers: Endgame after he sacrificed himself to disintegrate Thanos and his entire army using the Infinity Gauntlet, which likely spelled the end of Tony Stark in the MCU.

Though Tony Stark's last standalone Iron Man movie came all the way back at the beginning of Phase 2, he also played prominent roles in Captain America: Civil War, Spider-Man: Homecoming, and all four Avengers films. Tony's first appearance in the franchise was Jon Favreau's Iron Man in 2008. Downey Jr. was already a highly acclaimed actor, but Marvel Studios was apparently concerned about his checkered past and marketability as a star. Though they refused to cast Downey several times, Favreau famously fought for him, and now today it would be difficult to imagine anyone else playing Tony Stark.

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Though it is not likely Tony will return to the MCU, this has not stopped certain viewers from holding out hope. A Marvel fan announced on Twitter they had rented out a billboard in LA campaigning to bring Tony Stark back to the MCU (h/t CinemaBlend). The billboard urges fans to use the hashtag #BringBackTonyStarkToLife on April 24th, which marks the two-year anniversary of his final appearance in Endgame. The original tweet announcing the campaign has since been deleted, but the billboard is still standing. The images below were taken by a Screen Rant correspondent in Los Angeles:

While many Marvel fans were satisfied with the culmination of Iron Man's arc, there are likely some holdouts who have rather liked to see Tony receive a happier departure from the MCU, similar to Steve Rogers' fairytale ending with Peggy Carter. Instead, Tony received an emotional sendoff as almost every MCU character was present during his funeral, including Pepper Potts and their daughter Morgan.

However, the Russo brothers have said they would be open to seeing Iron Man return if it is "earned." The MCU has done fake-out deaths before in Captain America: The Winter Soldier with Nick Fury, so there is some precedent that would allow Tony to come back, but any return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe would likely undercut the emotional impact of his final heroic moments and emotional sendoff.