**Slight spoilers for “Avengers: Endgame”**
There’s no denying that what Marvel Studios has done over the last 11 years is unprecedented, and likely never to happen again. The studio has released 22 films, made over $20 billion, and doesn’t show any signs of slowing down. And arguably, you can say that the entire success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe comes down to one man. No, not Kevin Feige (although, let’s be real, he’s definitely the man behind the man), but actually Robert Downey, Jr., who launched the entire thing with “Iron Man.” With that in mind, “Avengers: Endgame” director Joe Russo thinks that RDJ deserves some awards recognition for this accomplishment.
READ MORE: The Essentials: Robert Downey Jr.’s Best Performances
For those somehow not aware of Downey, Jr’s credits when it comes to the MCU, then the short answer is that he’s the single-most popular actor on the planet right now because of his role as Tony Stark, aka Iron Man. First seen in 2008’s “Iron Man,” RDJ has appeared in two sequels, four ‘Avengers’ movies, one ‘Captain America’ film, and one ‘Spider-Man’ picture. Sure, you might be able to say that Chris Evans’ Captain America is the heart and soul of the franchise, but you can’t overstate Robert Downey, Jr’s impact on the current state of the film industry. He’s also a two-time Academy Award nominee (“Chaplin” for Best Actor and “Tropic Thunder” for Best Supporting Actor) and had a terrifically eclectic career.
But in speaking to the Washington Post, Joe Russo believes it’s the MCU work that carries a lot of weight. “His cumulative body of work from these movies is staggering,” Russo said. “If you look at the work over just even the last four [Marvel] films he’s done, it’s phenomenal. . . . He deserves an Oscar perhaps more than anyone in the last 40 years because of the way that he has motivated popular culture.”
He added, “He has the world in tears right now.”
Sadly, for the actor, last we checked, there’s no Oscar category for “Outstanding Achievement In The Field Of Superhero Franchise Building.” Perhaps down the road, the Academy can give the actor some sort of lifetime achievement award. But it’s highly unlikely that in the next year, RDJ will find himself with an Oscar nomination for his work in ‘Endgame,’ unless it breaks the “Avatar” box-office record and then some sort of campaign builds on the heels of that particular achievement.
All that being said, if you give Oscars out for the person that made grown men openly weep in a movie theater amongst their buddies, then there’s no competition. Watch this space as the Oscar conversation, deserved or not, continues to take up conversation space.