Reportedly, there will be a new film iteration for the "Iron Man" franchise. The fourth film will be a part of MCU Phase 4, so fans may expect it to be released by 2020. However, Robert Downey Jr.'s Tony Stark is said to be stepping down in this new movie.

According to speculations, while Robert Downey Jr. may still reprise his role as Tony Stark in the 2020 release, the iron suit will be worn by another character, relegating the eccentric genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist Tony Stark to a support/mentor role. If this is proven true, there are other candidates to be the next Iron Man.

If the next phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe will closely follow the comic book storylines, then the next "Iron Man" may be a 15-year old young student named Riri Williams. In the comics, Williams has gotten Stark's interest as a young engineer marvel, with the teen reverse-engineering the entire Iron Suit systems and technology from one of Stark's old Iron Man suits. Meanwhile, another story that developed is that Stark created an iron suit for the Black Widow, and with the last MC film hinting that Stark and Pepper Potts are calling it quits, a Black Widow role for "Iron Man 4" is possible. However, it is unclear if it will be tied with another major franchise film, since Scarlett Johansson is said to star in her own "Black Widow" film for MCU Phase 4.

There is also an off-the-wall suggestion from industry followers recently. According to Gamenguide, new speculations say that a well-known figure in the Marvel Universe will be the next Iron Man. However, instead of choosing from the array of superheroes, it is said that Marvel is mulling over the idea of the iron suit being taken over by the evil Dr. Doom.