Nowadays when one buys a movie, whether it’s on Blu-ray or a digital copy, they’re not just paying for the movie itself. They’re also getting bonus content, and among the most popular of these are commentaries, where members of the cast and crew comment about the movie and its creation while it’s playing. However, one movie that didn't get this feature was 2008’s Iron Man, and the reason fans will never get to hear it is because an official one was never recorded.
During his recent Reddit AMA to promote The Jungle Book, director Jon Favreau was asked about an Iron Man commentary he did with star Robert Downey Jr and if it will ever be made available. This was his response:
Robert and I did a live commentary once at the American Cinematheque. To my knowledge, it wasn't recorded.
I suppose it would be too much to ask if someone was at the American Cinematheque then and happened to make a bootleg recording, right? It’s a shame that Jon Favreau and Robert Downey Jr never recorded anything official for the Iron Man DVD/Blu-ray release back in 2008. It would have been nice to hear their thoughts on how the production went, especially at a time when the Marvel Cinematic Universe hadn’t exploded into the franchise juggernaut it is now. It was a much simpler time back then, when the MCU was still in its infancy and that Nick Fury was the greatest tease towards the Avengers we’ve ever had. On the off-chance Iron Man ever gets re-released, maybe a commentary could be included with that, but if not, maybe Favreau and Downey could get together and record something for YouTube. Heck, even if it was a payable extra online, hearing the two of them riff with one another would be worth the price.
2008’s Iron Man was the movie that kicked off the MCU, following billionaire industrialist Tony Stark as he escaped capture from terrorists using a suit of armor. Once stateside again, he turned his life around by using the upgraded Iron Man armor to help rid the world of threats, but soon had to contend with his mentor, Obadiah Stane, unleashing his Iron Monger suit. After helming Iron Man, Jon Favreau returned to the director’s chair for 2010’s Iron Man 2, and after that, he remained a producer for Iron Man 3, The Avengers and Avengers: Age of Ultron. He also participated in from of the camera as Happy Hogan, Tony Stark’s bodyguard and later Stark Industries’ head of security, in all three Iron Man movies. Since it doesn’t look like Favreau is interested in directing a Marvel movie again, perhaps he’d be up for reprising Happy at some point during Phase Three or beyond.
You can catch Jon Favreau’s latest directorial project, The Jungle Book, in theaters on April 15.
