Mel Gibson Not Directing ‘Iron Man 4,’ Robert Downey Jr. Says There Are No Plans For The Movie Right Now

Update: Well, that didn’t last long. RDJ was a little lead by Ellen, but on David letterman last night, he clarified things. “There’s no plans for an Iron Man 4. There’s no script for Iron Man 4“, Downey said. “But [Marvel] have a plan and I think they’re gonna announce it. You know, they’re very secretive about it.”  But maybe he means he’ll still be in additional “Avengers” films or Marvel team-up movies?  “They’ll be other stuff. Just between us, no, but I’m going to do other stuff with Marvel. I’m still going to be involved with Marvel and there’s gonna be plenty of fun stuff to happen.” We’ll find out. Watch the clip below.

Leading the witness in a humorous way, a reporter at Deadline suggested to Robert Downey Jr.last week that his good friend Mel Gibson could direct “Iron Man 4.” Downey Jr., going along with, playfully responded, “Why not? That movie would be bananas.” It was a joke between the writer and actor, but that didn’t stop the Internet from saying Robert Downey Jr. won’t star in “Iron Man 4” unless Mel Gibson directs.

But it could be a thing, the wishful thinkers thought, right? In today’s Reddit AMA, however, Downey Jr. dismissed the “story” and put it to rest. “It was an offhanded remark to a journalist and friend,” he wrote. “I have other projects in mind for Mel and I—sooner than later the MarvelRoster will be made public and all questions will be answered.” So no, Gibson won’t direct “Iron Man 4.”

Asked about “Iron Man 4” on “Ellen,” the actor said, “I know there’s going to be more Marvel movies, and they have big ideas of how to do it best. We’re in the middle of negotiations, blah blah blah.” Ellen basically says, “so yes?” to which he responds positively once again. So get ready for more headlines.

In ‘Avengers’ news, Downey Jr. suggests “Avengers: Age of Ultron” may not try and top the escalating Easter Egg credit sequences of recent Marvel films. “I remember shooting that shawarma post-credit scene, and having just finished ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron,’ wondered how we’d beat it. Joss says ‘The way to win is to not try.’ “

In related Downey Jr. news, he says the “Sherlock Holmes” franchise is not dead, and that more films could come. “Yes, we have a ‘Sherlock 3‘ in development. We want it to be the best of the series, so that’s a pretty tall order. Also, ‘Perry Mason‘ is a property I’m looking forward to developing further, going back to the 1931 book series…similarly to what we did with the first two Sherlocks, mining the original material for things that are ‘new.’ “