Tony Stark and his heroic counterpart, Iron Man, have been one of the most important parts of the MCU since it’s creation. Here we look at 13 of his greatest moments.
Tony Stark is easily the most popular character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). Sure, the cool suits of armor help, but Iron Man isn’t what makes him so beloved. Tony Stark started as just an arrogant billionaire who made weapons for the United States military.
After an unfortunate accident involving one of his missiles, Stark swore off making armaments. This was the beginning of what made Tony Stark a great character. He developed layers to his personality. While he was still confident in his abilities, he wasn’t as narcissistic anymore. He learned that the world doesn’t revolve around him and set out to protect it and the people he cared about.
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Robert Downey Jr.’s time as Tony Stark was the lead character in the MCU for over ten years. During that time, he delivered some of the most memorable and iconic moments in the history of the MCU and became one of the most beloved characters in the franchise — a franchise that may never have grown into what it has become without the character’s help launching it.
There have been so many amazing Iron Man moments over the years, but there’s no denying these 13 rank among the best of the best!
13. Tony Stark in court
Movie: Iron Man 2
At the beginning of Iron Man 2, Tony Stark was summoned to discuss the legality of his Iron Man armor. Since Stark doesn’t work for the government, the armor has been deemed a threat. Stark obviously didn’t agree since he did stop terrorists and the Iron Monger.
Senator Stern wasn’t convinced – though this could have been due to the fact that Iron Man was probably a threat to Hydra (we find out Stern is Hydra in Captain America: Winter Soldier). Stern even got Stark’s best friend James Rhodes to read the dangers of Iron Man going public. In typical fashion, Tony Stark made everyone against him look foolish.
Stark is one of the smoothest and smartest people in the MCU. Stark embarrassed Senator Stern and debunked all his theories about his armor starting international threats in spectacular fashion. He hacked into their computer and showed what was really going on. The countries that were supposed to be threats were nowhere near being ready. He even showed up his rival (rival being used loosely) Justin Hammer and made him look like idiot in the process.
Stark proved that it’s going to take more than that sad attempt to stop him. In the end, they tried to get one over on Stark and all they got was egg on their face.
12. Iron Man versus Thor
Movie: The Avengers
Like most great superhero team-ups, they always start with some animosity. In The Avengers movie, this was no different. After capturing Loki, Thor assaulted Tony Stark to get him back. As anyone could predict, Stark wasn’t going to take this lightly. When Captain America said, “We need a plan of attack.” Stark responded exactly like you’d assume. With bravado. “I have a plan. Attack” and flew off to attack Thor.
Thor and Iron Man both threatened each other, but after Stark called Thor a tourist, Thor attacked. Thor made the mistake of taking this “metal man” lightly. He used lightning on Iron Man and all that did was supercharge his suit. Stark may have been outmatched, but he more than held his own against a god.
Tony Stark went toe to toe with a god and lived to tell the tale. This wasn’t just a fun fight, this was a taste of what Iron Man could do. He wasn’t going to just sit there and let some random guy come on his turf and dictate the rules. Even if he is a god.
Stark isn’t that great of a fighter, but he’s smart enough to take advantage of every situation. For example, when Thor slammed him, he used his jets to trip Thor before he could hit with his hammer. This is an underrated Iron Man moment and is without a doubt one of the character’s best.
11. Iron Man vs Hulk
Movie: Avengers: Age of Ultron
In The Avengers movie, we saw the Hulk lose control. He fought Thor, Black Widow, and any agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. crazy enough to try and stop him. It must have been that moment when Tony Stark realized that his current armor wasn’t going to be enough to take down the Hulk if necessary. He’d need something bigger, stronger, and more durable. So he created the Hulkbuster armor. After Hulk’s rampage in Avengers: Age of Ultron, I’m sure everyone was glad that he did.
Hulk was beating Iron Man in this fight. Nevertheless, this fight would have gone down differently if Stark was in his regular Iron Man armor. The Hulkbuster suit allowed Stark to take a beating, fight back, and protect people from the catastrophe they caused during their brawl. Stark did get the final blow to knock the Hulk out before things went from bad to worse.
This was one of the better and underappreciated fights in the MCU. Not just because of the fight (that was good), but the Hulkbuster armor itself. Fans of the comic books had been waiting to see the Hulkbuster armor. When it was used, people weren’t disappointed.
It had the look and the function that we all hoped for. One of the better renditions from comic to film. It was great that this wasn’t the only time we saw the Hulkbuster armor, though, is it ironic that Bruce Banner ended up wearing it last?
10. A talk with Howard Stark
Movie: Avengers: Endgame
For most of Tony’s life, he thought his father (Howard Stark) didn’t care about him. He was always on Tony to be a better person and tried to get him to stop wasting his potential. Before Tony could make amends, his father was killed in what he thought was a car accident (we’ll discuss what really happened later). This caused Tony to develop all sorts of issues that plagued him most of his adult life. In Avengers: Endgame, Tony found out what was really going on in his father’s head.
During a mission to get one of the Infinity Stones, Tony encountered his father by accident while traveling to the past. It just so happened that Tony’s mother (Maria Stark) was pregnant with Tony. Howard went on to tell Tony (who obviously didn’t know it was his son) that he was terrified of having a child and would do anything to protect him. This gave Tony some insight into how his father really felt. Howard only wanted what was best for him.
Tony hated his dad. He always felt that he was chasing his ghost and would never be the person he wanted him to be. It also didn’t help that the last time he saw his father they left on bad terms. This encounter gave Tony the moment he needed. He got a chance to talk to his dad and hug him one more time. It was a beautiful moment.
9. Tony Stark recruits Spider-Man
Movie: Captain America: Civil War
Steve Rogers had gone rogue and it was up to Tony Stark to bring him in. If Stark failed, General Thaddeus Ross let him know that the U.S. Government was next up and they’d bring him in by any means necessary. Stark assembled Black Widow, himself, War Machine, Vision, and Black Panther to try and get to Steve Rogers first. But something was missing. Of course, Tony Stark had someone tucked away just in case. That someone was the Friendly Neighborhood (and teenage) Spider-Man!
Stark shows up at Peter Parker’s house under the guise that he was giving Peter a grant. An easy way to trick his Aunt May without raising any suspicions. From there, Tony, well, pretty much blackmailed Peter into helping him. If he didn’t, he said he’d expose Peter’s secret to his aunt. However, it all worked out for the best.
We all knew Tony Stark was a jerk. Although, this was a bit much. Tony Stark got Spider-Man to join him and it’s doubtful that he told him everything and even sugar-coated some of the details. The good part is that this was the perfect way to introduce Peter Parker.
They showed him to be the neurotic and jumpy teenager that he is in the comics. It was also cool that he called Spider-Man in yelling, “Underoos!” when he popped out to help Stark’s team.
8. One on one with Thanos
Movie: Avengers: Infinity War
Star-Lord’s plan was on its way to working. The Infinity Gauntlet was almost off Thanos’ hand and the battle was almost over. Then, Peter Quill lost his cool and everything went downhill fast. Everyone was slowly taken out. Even Doctor Strange couldn’t take Thanos down and he’s the Master of the Mystic arts. That wasn’t going to stop Tony Stark from giving it his all.
Iron Man came from the sky ready for one more shot at the Mad Titan Thanos. And it wasn’t just his normal repulsor rays. Stark had a brand new armor complete with new toys.
Stark went at Thanos with a ton of creative moves. He shot a piece of his armor that prevented Thanos from closing his hand. This stopped him from using the gauntlet. He transformed his arms and hands into jet-powered battering rams. He even made a shield that stopped a blast from the power stone. In the end, it wasn’t enough.
If Stark didn’t win, then why is it on this list? Simple, Stark fared better than any of his teammates. It was only a drop of blood, but Thanos couldn’t really get a hold of Stark until the very end of the fight. A feat no one, but Thor can boast.
In the end, Thanos seemed to respect Stark more than anyone else he fought. He already knew about him and the fight they had helped his opinion of him.
7. Iron Man VS Captain America and Bucky
Movie: Avengers: Civil War
Tony Stark, Steve Rogers, and Bucky Barnes found a way to coexist to complete their mission. Too bad this was Zemo’s plan the who time. He got the three of them together and Stark saw the video of when Bucky kills Stark’s parents. It’s important to note that Bucky was being mind-controlled at the time. But, as Stark put it, “I don’t care; he killed my mom.” That started the fight between Captain America and Bucky Barnes against Iron Man.
It ended up coming down to Iron Man against Captain America. At first, it looked like Iron Man would lose easily. He was getting beaten badly by Cap. That’s nothing to Stark. He had his suit analyze Cap’s fighting style and proceeded to beat Cap badly. A moment taken from the Civil War comic series. If not for Bucky getting involved, Stark may have blasted Cap’s head off.
It isn’t just the fight that puts this on here. It’s the first time we see these kinds of emotions from Tony Stark. He was angry when he saw who killed his parents. He was disappointed when he realized that his friend Steve Rogers withheld it from him.
In the end, he was sad that Steve didn’t understand and even made Cap leave his shield. This was one of the deepest moments we’ve seen from Tony Stark. The look of sadness and pain on Tony’s face was a sad thing to see.
6. Conversation with Loki
Movie: The Avengers
Loki thought his plan was working exactly the way he planned… Until he had a conversation with Tony Stark.
Loki told Stark that the Chitauri were coming and that there was nothing that anyone could do about it. Stark stalled by letting Loki know how badly he messed up. Loki managed to make every single one of the Avengers mad. Now, they were coming after him.
As Stark said, “Not a great plan. When they come, and they will, they’ll come for you.” Stark hits the point home saying, “If we can’t protect the Earth, you can be damn sure we’ll avenge it.”
Loki tries another tactic. He attempts to take over Stark’s mind, but his scepter wouldn’t work with the reactor in Stark’s chest. Loki says this usually works. Stark replies perfectly, “Performance issues aren’t uncommon…” and Loki throws Stark out the window for his insolence.
For all of Loki’s arrogance, he didn’t count on Stark being so confident and sure of himself. Considering that Loki hasn’t had much interaction with humans it’s not shocking that Loki would think he could intimidate him. What’s funnier is that Stark didn’t bat an eye.
He wasn’t impressed with Loki on any level and it showed. So much that it frustrated Loki into violence. The, “We have a Hulk” quote will go down as one of the most iconic lines in comic book movie history. Loki should have taken that drink earlier.
5. You’re a lab experiment
Movie: The Avengers
Steve Rogers and Tony Stark butted heads from the moment they met each other. It was to be expected considering that they are two different people. The first time they really went at it was on the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier. Stark was saying he was okay with Bruce Banner letting off a little steam. For obvious reasons, Steve Rogers wasn’t okay with it and told Stark to back off. Stark said that he was starting to wish he’d make him. The conversation gets worse from there.
Steve calls out Tony saying, “You may not be a threat, but you stop pretending like you’re a hero.” Stark replies with a pretty harsh response. “A hero? Like you? You’re a laboratory experiment, Rogers. Everything special about you came out of a bottle.”
They may have been respectful during missions, but it’s doubtful they were ever really friends. Rogers didn’t like the person that Tony Stark was and they always bumped heads. They’re just too different. This was the moment when every comic book fan realized that the Marvel Comics series Civil War would be coming soon.
4. Iron Man saves New York
Movie: The Avengers
The Avengers were winning the day. They were taking care of the Chitauri easily and the beam keeping the portal open was about to be closed. Unbeknownst to the rest of the heroes, an unknown cabal ordered a nuke to hit New York to take care of the alien invasion. Nick Fury tried to talk them out of it, but they didn’t listen. Fury even tried to shoot the planes down. He only took out one of the two they sent.
Thankfully, Iron Man was there to save the city. He intercepted the missile and carried it right into the portal. Iron Man’s armor powered down right after he sent the missile crashing into the only thing keeping the Chitauri alive on Earth.
Tony Stark fell crashing down through the portal. Thankfully, the Hulk caught Stark in the air before he crashed into the pavement. Thor, Captain America, and the Hulk stood over him. It looked like Stark was dead. They began to mourn until Hulk yelled at Stark and woke him up.
This was appropriate for a couple of reasons. First, Captain America just finished telling Tony Stark that he didn’t think Stark was a hero. Come to find out, Stark was ready to put his life on the line to save the day. This was also perfect since Iron Man was the first hero in the MCU. He should be the one to save the city in the first Avengers movie.
3. I am Iron Man
Movie: Iron Man
Tony Stark spent most of his life being selfish. For the first time, he started becoming selfless. He gave up a profitable career selling weapons to the U.S. Military, created a suit of armor that he could use to protect innocent people, and was willing to sacrifice his life if it meant stopping a major threat. After his first battle with a supervillain was won, Tony Stark called a press conference to let the world know the truth. That Iron Man was his bodyguard.
The first reporter didn’t believe any of that. Tony tried to deny it and did so poorly. Rhodey tried to tell Stark to stick to the cards. Stark rambled for a little while and paused. He looked into the sea of reporters and said, “The truth is…I am Iron Man.”
This was the most iconic moment in Iron Man’s run (until Avengers: Endgame). He let the world know that there were superheroes. More importantly, it was someone famous. It was also done in typical Tony Stark fashion. By making a show of it.
This moment also gave a nod to the comic books since the Iron Man bodyguard bit was an excuse Stark used in Marvel Comics. This is one of the perfect moments to begin the legacy of Tony Stark in the MCU.
2. Tony fixes the time problem
Movie: Avengers: Endgame
Scott Lang returned from the Quantum realm and everything was different. He had no idea what Thanos did or what a Thanos was. When Scott met Steve Rogers and Natasha Romanoff, he told them while five years passed in the real world, only five hours had passed in the Quantum Realm. This gave them an idea.
They could go back in time, get the Infinity Stones, and bring everyone back. However, this isn’t as easy as it sounded. They needed someone smart enough to figure out time travel. The first person they thought of was Tony Stark. Unfortunately, he retired, married, and was raising his daughter. Tony declined and the trio went on their way. Of course, Tony couldn’t stop obsessing over what they asked him.
Tony used his 3-D computer to calculate how to solve the time travel problem without damaging the timeline. Not surprising at all, he figures it out. After a talk with his wife, Tony went to the Avengers and helped them go back in time and bring back the Infinity Stones.
There isn’t a person in the MCU smarter than Tony Stark. He was the only person who could figure out the time travel issue. Bruce Banner tried and kept failing. Had Tony stayed retired, who knows how things would have worked out. Bruce could have inadvertently messed up the timeline beyond repair and made things worse. Thankfully, Tony Stark was there to save everyone again.
1. You may be inevitable…
Movie: Avengers: Endgame
The battle to end all battles was being fought. Everyone who was gone during the Thanos snap had returned. That included all of the Avengers’ friends willing to fight and then some. It looked like Thanos and his army were on the ropes until Thanos got his hands on the Infinity Gauntlet Tony made.
With a snap of Thanos’ purple fingers, everything they fought so hard for would be taken away. Thanos gave a quick line saying, “I am inevitable.” and snapped his fingers, but nothing happened. Tony Stark showed that he actually had the stones in his armor and said, “I am Iron Man.” With a snap of his fingers, Tony dusted all of Thanos’ troops and Thanos himself. This, however, came at a price.
Tony Stark’s body wasn’t strong enough to use the stones without irreversible damage to his body. Tony Stark died on the battlefield after saving the universe.
The Iron Man legacy began when he said, “I am Iron Man” and ended like that as well. Tony Stark was the most important and popular character in the MCU. It was fitting that he would be the one to save the day. And he did it in spectacular fashion.
Thanos didn’t even realize Stark took the stones from him. Tony Stark will be missed, but he will go down as the man who started the MCU and saved the universe from destruction.