Robert Downey Jr. Thanks Infinity War Crew With Personalized Gifts

Robert Downey Jr. did not forget to send thank you presents to the crew who worked tirelessly on Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers 4, gifting each of them customized chairs. Production for the Marvel ensemble flick kicked off in January last year, and it wrapped only several days ago. Throughout the 12 months of principal photography, both the actors and the countless staff involved poured all their efforts in the hopes of making history via the much-anticipated spectacles.

As the new year rolled out, more and more cast of the Avengers films started wrapping up their roles on the project. Meanwhile, Downey Jr., Chris Evans, who plays Captain America, and Paul Rudd, who plays Ant-Man, were the last to leave the film’s Atlanta set, even celebrating with the Russos and the rest of the crew with an enormous Thanos cake. But apparently, before they all went their separate ways, the 52-year-old actor, who kickstarted the MCU back in 2008, did not forget to thank the crew who worked hard for the film.

Patrick Istorico, who was a film grip on the massive production, took it to his official Instagram account to share Downey Jr.’s nifty gift to him and his co-workers: a personalized set chair that has their name and the title of the production. True to the actor’s quirky personality, it has a fun detail, a metal plate with an engraved message that reads: “HEART FELT THANX FROM THE CENTER OF MY ARC REACTOR” – an obvious nod to his superhero alter-ego. While the plate has the STARK INDUSTRIES branding, alongside an Iron Man illustration, it was Downey’s sign on it, not Tony Stark’s.

This is not the first time that we’ve heard about Downey Jr.’s generosity on the set of these Marvel films. Just last weekend during a panel at Ace Comic-Con, Evans openly gushed about his co-star, revealing that he made sure everyone felt welcome and comfortable during the rigorous process of shooting the Avengers films. Prior to that, his castmates on Captain America: Civil War famously talked about being invited to lunches in his trailer while filming. It makes sense that the actor plays the unofficial leader of the group given that he is considered the godfather of the MCU and one of the driving forces that launched the successful franchise.

Some may view the customized chairs as Downey Jr.’s parting gift to crew members who he may never work with again, at least when it comes to a Marvel film. Word has it that Stark is one of the several characters who have a higher chance of biting the bullet in either Infinity War or its sequel considering Kevin Feige’s comments about some principal game players meeting their end in the upcoming ensemble flicks. Hard as it may be for a lot of fans, the death of a major superhero is essential when it comes to progressing the MCU as it will open opportunities for other actors to come in and introduce us to new beings that would inhabit a revitalized film series. That being said, it will be quite difficult to fill the void that the veteran actor will leave as not only is he one of the original Avengers, he is also the saga’s poster boy.

KEY RELEASE DATES

• Black Panther release date: Feb 16, 2018
• Avengers: Infinity War / The Avengers 3 release date: May 4, 2018
• Ant-Man & The Wasp release date: Jul 6, 2018
• Captain Marvel release date: Mar 8, 2019
• The Avengers 4 / Untitled Avengers Movie release date: May 3, 2019
• Untitled Spider-Man: Homecoming Sequel release date: Jul 5, 2019