Mark Ruffalo has earned a reputation for spilling the tea during interviews among his Marvel co-stars. Given that he has spoiled quite big events in the MCU history, he had already given a major update hinting at his fellow co-star, Robert Downey Jr.’s return. It might come as quite a surprise since his small teaser now quite aligns with the rumors surrounding Avengers: Secret Wars.
Robert Downey Jr. has portrayed the role of Tony Stark/Iron Man in the franchise which eventually sacrificed himself to save the world from the hands of Thanos in Avengers: Endgame. Since then, many have been wondering about Marvel’s next step regarding the character’s return. Back in March this year, the former offered a glimpse of hope for fans to witness Iron Man’s return once again.
Mark Ruffalo Talked About Robert Downey Jr.’s Return to MCU
At the Emerald City Comic-Con for the Mean and Green: Mark Ruffalo Spotlight panel via The Direct, Ruffalo was asked about how he felt about losing Robert Downey Jr.’s character, Tony Stark/Iron Man in MCU. While he did not give a direct answer, he made sure to tease a little something for fans to have hope. In the pure Mark Ruffalo fashion, he mentioned,
“Sad, but there is a time machine. And there are alternate universes and realities, so anything could happen.”
When asked to clarify whether he would mean that the character could return to the universe, he responded,
“[Laughs, looks at the ceiling] Are one of these boards going to fall on me? Man, are you trying to get me in trouble again? I’m not going to say it’s not possible, but I’m not going to say it is.”
While our Green Guy didn’t hint much, it is surely going to be great news if Marvel plans for Downey Jr.’s return. While his theory is not all fresh, a recent Secret Wars rumor is seemingly presenting a similar theory to what our Marvel star teased about.
Marvel Reportedly Wants to Reboot MCU With Secret Wars
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Ahead of the upcoming movie, Avengers: Secret Wars, reports have surfaced about the studio’s plans for the movie. As per Joanna Robinson, author of the new Marvel book, MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios, Kevin Feige has plans to reboot the franchise with the new movie.
Speaking on The Watch podcast, he mentioned,
“We have a quote from Kevin Feige sort of implying that, like, Secret Wars will serve as a soft reboot in which they can prune everything.”
He further pointed out the possibility that the soft reboot could bring back the old characters.
“That’s not to use a Loki-ism. [They’ll] prune everything that’s not working and just keep what is [working], or bring back people you thought were gone forever.”
If this rumor turns out to be true, it can surely be a game-changer in the MCU as it would potentially bring back several iconic characters. Set in Phase 6, Avengers: Secret Wars is intended to conclude the Multiverse saga. It is currently scheduled to hit theaters on May 7, 2027.
