It is reported that Robert Downey Jr. will return to Marvel with a salary far exceeding 80 million US dollars. "Avengers 5" will start shooting in Q2 2025

After a challenging year, Marvel decided to go back to its past formula for success, which meant reuniting with all-time great Robert Downey Jr. and the Russo brothers, who directed two box office hits, Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.

However, the price of recalling the core team members is not cheap. Sources revealed that Marvel will pay Anthony and Joe Russo brothers $80 million to direct "Avengers 5" and "Avengers 6", while Downey's salary for playing the super villain "Doctor Doom" is "much higher" . It is reported that the only condition for Downey's return is that the film must be directed by the Russo brothers: "They are the only people he is willing to work with."

The Russo brothers' contract does not include a share of box office revenue, but does include performance bonuses when the box office reaches $750 million and $1 billion. The brothers will also produce the two films through their own AGBO company. This marks a major shift for Marvel, as Marvel usually does not work with external producers, but prefers to operate internal teams.

For Downey, who has pushed Marvel to the top of the box office with the "Iron Man" series, his contract is full of various benefits, including private jets, exclusive security and a complete "trailer camp." It is worth mentioning that Downey won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor this year for "Oppenheimer."

Downey is the highest-paid member of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, earning a total of $500 million to $600 million for four “Avengers” movies, three “Iron Man” films and cameos in “The Incredible Hulk,” “Captain America: Civil War” and “Spider-Man: Homecoming,” according to a person familiar with the matter.

Still, some changes are necessary. While the Russo brothers' previous two Avengers films shot in Atlanta, the new film will begin filming in London in the second quarter of 2025.

While Marvel became the most powerful brand in the film industry through its first 30 films, it began to show cracks in 2023, with the lackluster Ant-Man 3 taking in just $476 million worldwide and the disastrous Captain Marvel 2 barely making over $200 million worldwide.

Additionally, the entire future Kang-centric "Avengers" series had to be scrapped due to actor Jonathan Majors' legal troubles. Marvel's parent company Disney severed ties with Majors just hours after he was convicted of assault and harassment following an argument with his then-girlfriend. Director Destin Daniel Cretton also withdrew from "Avengers 5" shortly after.