Robert Downey Jr. Taking Iron Man 2 Seriously

In an interview with Collider, actor Robert Downey Jr. spoke about the challenges that he and the cast of Iron Man 2 face in filming the sequel. Downey spoke during a roundtable discussion for his latest film, "The Soloist." While participating in the discussion, the actor told reporters that since he had never filmed a sequel before in his long career, he is feeling the pressure not to disappoint the fan base he built up from playing the lead role in the first Iron Man movie. "So I actually have taken 'Iron Man 2' probably more seriously than any movie I've ever done, which is appropriately ridiculous for Hollywood," Downey confessed.

Downey also spoke about the sequel's storyline, which he described as "incredibly risky." Along with massive improvements to the film's sets, Downey says that the cast of Iron Man 2 and the film's themes have been beefed up. The actor went on to warn fans to be ready for a big genre movie that is very artistic. "We really, I think, leaving ourselves open to…we're kind of trying to tell a story about how a dysfunctional family saves life on Earth as we know it."

Some fans on IGN posted comments about the story, in which they believe that the risk about which Downey is talking is the possibly that Tony Stark's battle with alcoholism will play a huge part in the sequel. While director Jon Favreau has been mum on how big of a part Stark's demons will play in the film, some reports have leaked clues indicating that Iron Man 2 will tackle some very adult themes.

In regard to Favreau's vision for the film, including his passion for telling fans about filming Iron Man 2 constantly on Twitter, while keeping quiet on the plot details for the film, Downey told reporters, "Jon is my brother and he is the keeper of the 'Iron Man' flame and whatever he wants to do, within reason, to keep his anxieties at bay is absolutely fine with me." So, it's a very real possibility that Downey is trying to warn parents that they may have to answer some very difficult questions if they take their kids to see Iron Man 2, while respecting Favreau's code of silence about the alcoholism angle.