Previously, it has been speculated that Robert Downey Jr. will be replaced by a new female character named Riri Williams in "Iron Man 4" mainly due to his salary increase demand. However, the actor never gave his official statement to confirm or to deny this rumor.

Recent reports suggested that "The Avengers" star playing the role of philanthropist Tony Stark in "Iron Man 4" might actually not happen again.

In an interview with Postmedia Network as reported by Toronto Sun, Kevin Feige said that the actors who portrayed superhero characters might be recast because they have been playing the role for a long time already. Though Feige mentioned "Iron Man" as one of his examples, he immediately clarified that the said idea is too impossible to happen for now.

"These characters have been around for 50-plus years, and have been relatively ageless. Sometimes there are alternate stories where the character is younger than they usually are, or older, but they usually maintain a certain age. I think most of these characters that are iconic, like (James) Bond, like Batman, like Spider-Man, like Iron-Man, someday will be portrayed by different actors... The good news right now is I don't have to think about that for a long time... We have story-lines for this cast for many years to come," Feige said.

Feige's statement is likely suggesting that Marvel Studios still has a lot of plans for "Iron Man," and Robert Downey Jr. could still play his role and suit up for his Tony Stark character.

Following his interview, speculations like "Iron Man 4" already in the works and Downey reprising his role started to surface, but in the previous reports, it was expected that the highly anticipated movie will come out in 2020.

Robert Downey Jr. has yet to verify if there will be an "Iron Man 4" and if he's going to reprise his role.