When asked what he would do if Robert Downey, Jr. were to leave, he said that he would probably recast the role. "I think [pre-Casino Royale] Bond is a good example. Let's put it this way: I hope Downey makes a lot of movies for us as Stark. If and when he doesn't, and I'm still here making these movies, we don't take him to Afghanistan and have him wounded again. I think we James Bond it."
Robert Downey, Jr. was also asked a similar question and stated, "I would really hate for someone else to think they could step into my shoes. I wonder who's playing Tony Stark next.… I know things are looking like that they could go on for a long while. As usual in my book, it's all about quality control and delivering a product that you can have this kind of reaction to. If they keep doing that, maybe I'll keep showing up".
