Kids these days, always plugged in to their smartphones and laptops and Instagrams, constantly suffering from the compulsion to record every aspect of their lives. For a superhero, this is probably a bad idea, given the whole secret identity thing and all — but our new Peter Parker is very much a millennial, and he’s going to vlog this whole thing if it kills him.
Here’s a quick question for you, who is the most important actor in the Marvel Cinematic Universe? We all know who the highest-paid actor is — that would be Robert Downey Jr. — but is he still the most important actor in the franchise as well? Has Chris Evans or Chris Hemsworth surpassed him? How about one of the characters from Guardians of the Galaxy or a newcomer like Tom Holland? Is anyone in the MCU so irreplaceable that Marvel couldn’t introduce another version of their character? It’s a very interesting question, and one that the studio and actors are no-doubt struggling with internally.
The prevailing message of the upcoming Spider-Man: Homecoming has been that of novelty. This will be a fresh take on the Peter Parker mythos, making him younger than ever, sticking him in the treacherous social minefield of high school, and assigning him a lovably bratty irreverence more in-step with the comic-book original. Plus, Aunt May is young and hot now! But while Marvel and Sony’s advertising has gone to great lengths to assure audiences that this will not be their father’s Spider-Man (and it definitely won’t be the Andrew Garfield one we’re all psychologically working to repress), there is one respect in which this production is business as usual.
Wanna hang with Robert Downey Jr., Tom Holland and the rest of the Avengers: Infinity War cast? Now’s your chance. Today Marvel launched its latest Omaze campaign with a new video, in which the eternally charismatic RDJ invites you to join him for a special trip to the set of Marvel’s upcoming superhero crossover epic. All you have to do is make a small donation. That’s it. Easy, right?
Yes, Robert Downey, Jr. is definitely going to play Doctor Dolittle, the veterinarian who can talk to animals. Sure, fine, cool. And for those of you who are interested, there’s some good news: you won’t have to wait as long to see it, since the release date of the film has been pushed up a month to accommodate for Star Wars: Episode 9.