Robert Downey Jr says the iconic Tony Stark doesn't define him

Following his heartbreaking departure from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Robert Downey Jr in his first interview, said he is in uncharted waters.

He said that working on films that were considered a 'sure thing' had an element of dependency.

In an appearance on 'Off Camera with Sam Jones', Downey Jr said, “I have not been forced to explore the new frontier of what is my creative and personal life after this. It’s always good to get ahead of where you are about to be. If you put eyes on ‘that’s going to be a big turn down there, spring of ‘19,’ I better start psychically getting on top of that. … It’s always in the transitions between one phase and the next phase that people fall apart.”

Robert Downey Jr started essaying Tony Stark/Iron Man in 2008 in the movie 'Iron Man'. After more than a decade, the iconic character was killed in 'Avengers: Endgame'.

During that decade, Downey progressed from an unreliable actor, a drug addict to being an ultimate superstar for his hefty appearances in MCU movies.

It has been reported that he earned $50 million for his maiden Avengers film in 2012 and $75 million for 'Avengers: Infinity War'.

“There’s always a dependency on something that feels like a sure thing. It’s the closest I will ever come to being a trust fund kid,” Downey said. “Initially, by creating and associating and synergizing with Tony Stark and the Marvel Universe … and being a good company man, but also being a little off kilter, being creative and getting into all these other partnerships, it was a time when … what do they say? Owners start looking like their pets.”

Downey Jr said that although he is most beloved for his outings in the Marvel films, he is more than just that.

"I am not my work. I am not what I did with that studio. I am not that period of time that I spent playing this character,” he said. “And it sucks, because the kid in all of us wants to be like, ‘No. It’s always going to be summer camp and we’re all holding hands and singing ‘Kumbaya’.”

For now, Downey Jr has another franchise starter, 'The Voyage of Doctor Doolittle' in the works, for a 2020 release.

This will be followed by the third instalment of the 'Sherlock Holmes' series which recently found a director in Dexter Fletcher.