Robert Downey Jr. comments on calls for a Black Widow spin-off

Robert Downey Jr. has been discussing the possibility of various potential Avengers spin-offs, and has shared his views on the increasing clamour for a female-led superhero movie.

“Doesn’t Scarlett deserve a break?” replied Downey, when asked whether he thought the star should be offered a Black Widow solo movie, before addressing the woman of the Marvel universe more generally.

“To me, the Iron Man franchise would never have taken off without [ Gwyneth ] Paltrow,” he says. “There’s something about her that grounded the story. She’s not your typical lady in a superhero movie, and then by Iron Man 3 she’s swallowing serums and putting on suits and kicking ass and all that stuff.”

He then went on to make the point that it isn’t just Black Widow in line for a solo movie, with Hawkeye and the Hulk also having strong cases for their own adventures.

“The funny thing is honestly at this point everyone deserves a franchise,” continues Downey. “Jeremy Renner… when folks see Avengers: Age of Ultron , he’s just a rockstar, a badass. And Ruffalo is pumped. He does great [ work ].”

“I’d like to hear them talk even more seriously about a Hulk franchise, because that’s been one of the toughest ones to get right. But I’m sure that my parent company is feeling expansive and bold after the summer they’ve had.”

Directed by Joss Whedon, Avengers: Age Of Ultron will open in the UK on 24 April 2015.

George was once GamesRadar's resident movie news person, based out of London. He understands that all men must die, but he'd rather not think about it. But now he's working at Stylist Magazine.