Marvel’s Initial Plans For the MCU Did Not Even Include Iron Man as Another Superhero Was Planned to Become The Mainstay
The immense success of Iron Man was the boost that propelled Marvel’s initiative of self-financing films to astronomical heights. The company’s journey from a comic book company to becoming the cinematic conglomerate it is today has been no less dynamic than the films it produces. However, creating something so huge was not easy.
Financial challenges and several other obstacles influenced things a great deal. So much so that the plan curated for the launch of the Marvel Cinematic Universe looked nothing like as things played out to be. The superheroes which are loved so unanimously today, were not even a part of the initial lineup. Surprising as it may be for many, the MCU was not only imagined but also almost created with no Iron Man in it.
Marvel Cinematic Universe Initially Did Not Have Iron Man But Another Superhero As The Centrepiece
Hard as it is to imagine the MCU with no Iron Man, it was done at the beginning of things. Marvel was in a phase of transition when it started financing films on its own. Before this, Marvel Studios worked as an entity to sell off the rights of their biggest characters to other production companies.
Due to this reason, Marvel could not use their most popular characters in their own films. This means Marvel had to start without its biggest characters back then i.e. Blade, and Power Pack, among others.
This was all occurring in 2004, and Iron Man was not exactly the first choice to become the harbinger of MCU (via Screen Rant). The cornerstone status bestowed so graciously upon Iron Man was initially reserved for Doctor Strange. Before self-financing days at Marvel, the focus at large was on Power Pack.
It is certainly strange to imagine anyone but Robert Downey Jr.‘s Tony Stark as the de facto leader of the Avengers. But it cannot be denied that Doctor Strange is not far behind when it comes to being a leader.
What Was Marvel’s Initial Lineup?
Marvel’s tumultuous journey did end up in astronomical success. But things didn’t go as planned, which might not be the worst thing to happen. Initially, the lineup announced for the films to be made did not include the characters that are now the most iconic in the MCU. As aforementioned, Iron Man is one; Thor and many others.
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The announced lineup included: Ant-Man, The Avengers, Black Panther, Captain America, Cloak & Dagger, Doctor Strange, Hawkeye, Nick Fury, Power Pack, and Shang-Chi. It won’t be an overstatement to say that none of these characters actually got the fate that was planned for them.
Either way, MCU never failed to deliver impactful content throughout all its phases. What was the catalyst of the change in the lineup may not be known, but it established an exponential trajectory for the film franchise.
