I can’t believe the MCU’s best Iron Man replacement has been in front of us all along

I think it’s time to admit that the MCU is the best replacement for Iron Man has been right in front of us for years. When Iron Man left the MCU (and the mortal coil), he left behind a void that the MCU has been struggling to fill since the multiverse saga began. Still, Robert Downey Jr. s recently announced return to the MCU as a completely different character, Doctor Doom, has triggered suspicion that Marvel may be attempting to inspire the same level of enthusiasm for upcoming Marvel releases that was present during his tenure.

I don’t think the cheek holds up in Iron Man though. No Avengers have assembled since Avengers: EndgameLeaving the supposedly interconnected stories of the MCU’s newest heroes feeling more disparate than ever. Robert Downey Jr. is fantastic, but I find it hard to believe that the entire MCU rests on his shoulders alone. Instead, the MCU timeline has a succession problem, as the void left in the wake of Tony Stark’s death should have been filled almost immediately in the movie that immediately followed. Avengers: Endgame.

Spider-Man has had the most solo MCU movies since Avengers: Endgame

Spider-Man 4 is confirmed and added to the list

One of the sticking points of the Multiverse Saga is the somewhat overwhelming wealth of new content and characters it has introduced. This is now being talked about by Disney as it pivots to a “Quality over quantity” Ethos, but it does not restore the gulf left between the solo movies of the veteran Avengers of the MCU. As the multiverse saga debuts new characters like the Eternals and Shang-Chi, returning Avengers who have previously afforded solo cinematic outings .suffered a downturn in production this is to be expected, but there is one notable outlier.

Spider-Man’s solo MCU debut was in 2017 Spider-Man: HomecomingWhich was followed two years later with Spider-Man: Far From Home. Although his second movie technically fell within the Infinity Saga, it was the first to release after Tony Stark’s death and the one movie that focused heavily on its repercussions. The recent announcement that Spider-Man 4 Will begin filming in early 2026 has compounded thisMaking him the most prolific Avenger in the multiverse saga.

Iron Man has had the same number of solo movies in the Infinity Saga as Thor and Steve Rogers’ Captain America, but his centrality to the plot of every Avengers movie has made him the de facto main character of the franchise. Over halfway through the Multiverse Saga, only one MCU character boasts the same number of solo movies. Spider-Man’s presence is now as central to the MCU as his late mentor, but he is not nearly as prominent in the multiverse saga as the character who should, at this point, feel like his predecessor.

Spider-Man should be the new main character of the MCU after the endgame

He was established as Tony’s successor from the beginning

The popularity of Iron Man is unassailable and may be the reason for Marvel’s decision to bring Robert Downey Jr. But I’m struggling to get the idea that Marvel wasted its chance to replace Tony Stark with Spider-Man: another character that proved to be just as popular. Since his debut in Captain America: Civil WarTom Holland’s Spider-Man has been hailed as near-perfect casting, and an extraordinary Lake addition to the MCU cast whose desire to do good is just as strong as Stark’s, but comes with a novel approach.

As for his popularity, the proof is plain to see. Spider-Man’s solo franchise has been more financially successful than Iron Man’s, racking up an average of $983.5 million for the MCU compared to Iron Man’s $808.4 million. While it could be argued that the most successful franchise, The Avengers, were shows for Iron Man because he was their de facto star, it is impossible to ignore the collective impact of his co-stars. Even then, the MCU’s two most successful movies, Avengers: Infinity War And Avengers: Endgame, Featured both characters.

It’s obviously a little unfair to turn their box office home into a competition, as Iron Man was responsible for the launch of the MCU, while Spider-Man arguably flourished from the fruits of this labor at the height of the popularity of the Franchise. Nevertheless, in the face of the MCU now without any main character, it is clear to see that Spider-Man was best placed to take on the role. Still Instead of making Spider-Man the glue to assemble a new Avengers team at the beginning of the multiverse saga, like Stark in the Infinity Saga, Spider-Man is now completely anonymous..

What’s more frustrating is that the MCU went to great lengths to establish Peter Parker as Tony Stark’s protégé, despite there being no such comic book precedent. As a consequence, the frustration that some fans felt over turning Spider-Man into a sidekick didn’t exactly bear fruit, instead laying the groundwork for Spider-Man 4 Finally exploring Peter Parker with his own path outside of Avengers involvement. Ultimately, though, there’s a behind-the-scenes reason for Marvel stopping short of turning Spider-Man into the new Iron Man.

Why Spider-Man Can’t Really Be the MCU’s Multiverse Saga Main Character

Marvel does not own Spider-Man’s film rights

The MCU’s Spider-Man is the most successful live-action iteration to date, but he doesn’t belong at Marvel. Sony still holds the distribution rights to Spider-ManAnd his involvement in the MCU is only possible with Sony’s say-so. Making Spider-Man the MCU’s main character would therefore be reckless, as Sony holds at least most, if not all, of the cards. Thankfully, the studio’s permission to incorporate Spider-Man into the MCU has proven to be extraordinarily profitable, so prudent, for both parties involved—but it’s also an inconvenient obstacle for Marvel.

Details about the deal between Sony and Marvel are not public knowledge, but what is certain is that Marvel takes home a smaller fraction of Spider-Man’s box office success than Sony. This makes it unreasonable to turn him to the flagship character of the MCU when Marvel is also sitting on a lot of other Avengers from whom it can take 100% of the box office profits. It may be a tough pill to swallow, but I can at least find comfort in the fact that Spider-Man is still involved in the MCU and could still step into Stark’s shoes in another way.

How the MCU can still make Spider-Man the perfect Iron Man replacement

The Avengers still haven’t reassembled

While I can lament the fact that Marvel hasn’t turned Spider-Man into a central figure in the MCU similar to Tony Stark, there’s another narrative reason why it hasn’t happened yet. The first three MCU phases that made up the Infinity Saga were punctuated by Avengers movies in which Tony Stark took center stage. MCU phase 5 will end with thunderbolts* While MCU Phase 6 will begin with The Fantastic Four: First Steps. The only two Avengers movies of the multiverse saga, currently, will take place in its final phase.

With that in mind, There is still time for Spider-Man to embody the pivotal Avengers role of ​​Iron Man. Although Iron Man may be the main character of the Infinity Saga, he did not lead the Avengers, a position that instead went to the equally important Captain America. The role will probably fall to the new Captain America, Anthony Mackie’s Sam Wilson Avengers: DoomsdayA theory supported by the fact that President Ross tasks Wilson with reforming the team in his debut movie, Captain America: Brave New World.

This is where Spider-Man can finally live up to his Iron Man protégé, providing the intelligence of the outfit while Cap takes the lead. I’m very hopeful that this is Marvel’s plan, because Tom Holland and Anthony Mackie have already demonstrated exceptional chemistry off-screen that includes butterflies that surround the number of solo movies that they both boast. This, along with the question of how Spider-Man will react to a cunning villain who looks identical to Iron Man Makes Spider-Man’s role in the next two Avengers movies, at the very least, an incredibly exciting prospect.