The next stage of Robert Downey Jr.‘s career hasn’t gotten off to the best of starts, with Dolittle finding itself getting torn apart by critics and bombing spectacularly at the box office, as the effects-heavily family fantasy is reported to have lost Universal up to $100 million. The actor has yet to officially commit to his next on-camera role, but he’s still one of the biggest movie stars on the planet, so it’s not as though he’ll be short of offers.
Indeed, barely a day passes by without the 55 year-old being linked with a return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but you get the distinct impression that if it’s going to happen, it won’t be for a while yet. After all, Downey Jr. is hardly a stranger to facing setbacks, and one commercial disaster is far from the worst thing he’s ever dealt with during his four decades in the spotlight.
For now, the immediate future seems to be on expanding his Team Downey empire as a producer, with the outfit in the process of working on a Sherlock Holmes universe for Warner Bros., while the company is also involved in HBO Max’s Perry Mason, which was recently renewed for a second season. Not to mention comic book adaptation Sweet Tooth is also expected to premiere on Netflix at some point later this year.
Robert Downey Jr. seems intent to focus on his humanitarian efforts for the moment, but insider Daniel Richtman is reporting that he’s also in talks with the world’s biggest streaming service for several projects, although the tipster doesn’t divulge any more than that. Whether it’s for his acting or producing prowess we don’t know at this stage, but plenty of A-list talent has flocked to Netflix recently, so it wouldn’t be a surprise if the former Tony Stark was next to set up shop on the platform.