The Marvel Cinematic Universe is officially 10-years-old.Iron Manwas released on June 03, 2025, and thus, theMCUwas born. The universe of interconnected movies has evolved immensely since then, but given what fans all around the world have just experienced withAvengers: Infinity War, it’s worth acknowledging the relatively humble beginnings of this epic, groundbreaking and wildly successful cinematic experiment. In the decade since the release ofIron Man, the MCU has turned into a universe-sprawling, massive franchise that everyone in Hollywood wants to emulate.
Iron Man, at thetime of its release a decade ago, centered on a character that was in no way familiar to those in the mainstream. Though Tony Stark had been a core member ofThe Avengersin the world of Marvel Comics since the 60s, those who didn’t religiously read comic books really weren’t too familiar with the character, beyond perhaps a passing familiarity of the name. But since many of the Marvel characters had been licensed to other studios years prior, Marvel Studios had to make due with what they had.
Not only wasIron Mana character not many knew prior to the movie, but the casting of Robert Downey Jr., at the time, wastremendously risky. It’s easy to forget now, and many who grew up with the MCU may not even know, but Downey was not at what one would call a high point in his career at that time. After some scandalous happenings, RDJ wasn’t the big star he once was. However, he was perfect for the role of Tony Stark and, to date, it’s hard to think of a superhero who was more perfectly cast. Not only that, but Jon Favreau wasn’t experienced with blockbuster filmmaking at the time. There was a lot working against this movie.
Yet,Iron Manwound up being a smash success. The movie grossed $585 million worldwide and was a huge hit with critics and fans alike. It’s still the second-highest rated MCU movie on Rotten Tomatoes with a rock-solid 94 percent approval rating.Black Pantheris the only movie higher, so up until very recently the firstIron Manwas still theking of the hill, so to speak. WithoutIron Mansucceeding in such a way, the MCU as we know it may not exist. And Disney may not have a franchise that has made them $15 billion at the global box office.
Many studios havetried to cobble together their own cinematic universesin the years since the MCU kicked off. Some have been successful, withThe Conjuringuniverse of interconnected horror movies perhaps the best example currently. Then there are tremendous failures like Universal’s Dark Universe, which failed before it even really got going withThe Mummylast year. Then there’s the DCEU, which has had hits withWonder Womanand major misses withJustice League. But nothing has come close to what Kevin Feige andMarvelStudios has accomplished. That all started withIron Mana decade ago.
