Iron Man 4: Robert Downey Jr gets clean chit on drug conviction; Marvel holds back actor's return as Tony Stark?

"Iron Man" and Robert Downey Jr. fans have good news to celebrate and a bad news to sulk about. While the good part is that RDJ has got a clean chit from the Governor of California for his drug convictions, the sad thing is that his contract with Marvel apparently ends with "Captain America: Civil War". This hints at the possibility that he may not be reprising his role as Tony Stark in "Iron Man 4".

According to the latest report in TMZ, Robert Downey Jr. got a formal pardon from the Governor of California because the judge announced that the actor had led "honest and upright life" since his conviction between 1996 and 2002. It was also said that he demonstrated "good conduct in the community". And so, the actor now has restored all of his rights, including voting.

While that came as something to cherish about this Christmas, if the report in Crossmap is anything to go by, then it looks like RDJ will not return as Tony Stark. The website also pointed out that the actor himself has repeatedly denied that he would be coming back in "Iron Man 4".

The report said that Tony Stark will not be the main character and there's a possibility that Ty Simpkins could be the lead in "Iron Man 4", but he will not replace the character of Tony Stark.

These rumours started doing the rounds after it emerged that RDJ ended his contract with "Iron Man 3" and that Marvel and the actor are not on the same page when it came to negotiating his fee. Apparently, Downey Jr. has been asking for additional $50 million on top of the '$80 million' that he received for the previous instalment. And some reports even claimed that instead of a fixed figure, the actor could have been asking for a cut in the profits when the film releases.

So, the speculations went wild that Ty Simpkins, who played Harley Keener in "Iron Man 3" ( the boy genius, who helped Tony Stark track down the Mandarin) could replace RDJ's character as Tony Stark. But this new report stated that Harley will only fill the void to become the main lead and will not replace Tony Stark.

Well, a Downey/Tony Stark-less "Iron Man 4" movie sounds a bit incomplete, but we will know the truth once an official statement is released. Till then, all you Robert Downey Jr. fans, get your RDJ fix with "Captain America: Civil War", which is slated to be released on 6 May, 2016.